Violet Dawn
by Silvermoon520
Summary: So, here's my first Fanfic for this site! Pleaes review fairly. This is set in the world where all of the regions have been discovered, but it starts off in Kanto. My character Sumire (Maybe eventually a child) and her own best friend Pokemon, a Zorua, going through Red's adventure, and eventually taking over for Gold, and so on. I'm still doing research, so bear with me!
1. Chapter 1 - Dream before Departure

**Author's Note: **Sorry about some of the writing being in the brackets. I wrote it all out as being in the greater-than and less-than signs, but the website decided it didn't want to let me copy those over. So if things are in the brackets {like this}, it's to identify a Pokemon talking through telepathy, like some do in the series.

* * *

Green. That was all she could see, for the most part. A rolling field of green, with some red and yellow flowers dotted around her. The sun shown blissfully from the cloudless sky, bathing her face in the warmth it always did. A cool breeze flowed around her as she stood there, the grass tickling her bare feet lightly as she walked. The large, peaceful river in front of her filled the air with a pleasant sound, its crystal-clear waters allowing full view of the few Goldeen swimming through it.

As she walked forward to the river, the sounds of a nearby flock of Pidgey filled the air. Her attention shifted that direction, knowing that if that were really what she was hearing, then something would have had to startle them enough to leave their nests.

She walked downstream a little, finding a smooth, fallen tree to serve as a bridge. She didn't much like swimming, having never really learned how. She slowly made her way across the tree, using the branches jutting out from the sides as rails to ensure she didn't slip and fall into the water.

Getting across the stream was no problem. She hopped to the ground when she got to the other end, making sure to take extra caution to not land on the sharp roots of her makeshift bridge. She walked as quietly as she could, nearly on tiptoes, into the dense forest. Pidgey and Taillow chirped out their songs as she passed, though if they were startled or unbothered by her presence she couldn't even begin to guess.

Getting to around where she'd heard the flock fly off, she stopped. It was a large tree, one that she'd could see from across the river. An old Oak tree. It was beautiful, the way the branches curved gracefully, adorned by fluttering green leaves.

But there was one thing that caught her attention. Something glowing in one of the branches, something that she hadn't noticed by the river, and she was sure that it was what had startled the flock into fleeing the tree.

A child-sized figure stood on one of the branches. It was covered, from the top of its head to the tip of its tail, in beautiful, short, fine pink fur. Its long, slender tail coiled around the thick branch, long enough to wind around it a couple of times completely, and was at least twice the length of its body. It kept its balance on a pair of large, paw-like feet, which were about the same length as its torso if not a few inches bigger. Its head was wide and cat-like, with large, feline ears on the sides of its head. It looked down at her, with large, blue eyes, ones that seemed to smile at her when she got close.

"Mew!"

She jumped slightly when it let out its cry, still not believing what she was seeing. It really was a Mew, a real live Mew! She took a step forward, her eyes widening in joy as excitement filled her.

With its psychic powers, it floated up into the air, quickly flying away from her. It was letting out a small giggle, stopping when it got a few feet away.

She knew what it wanted. She'd read up on the child-like Pokémon in the past. Though all records said it was extinct, she couldn't deny what she was seeing at that very moment. "Wait for me!" she shouted as she chased it, giggling lightly.

She followed it deeper and deeper into the woods, not caring that she would get lost. She just wanted to play with it. That's all it wanted, after all. But before she knew it, it started to rain lightly. But again, she didn't care.

That was until the wind picked up.

It was a light rain at first, but it was quickly developing into a harsh storm. She couldn't explain it, but it seemed there was just something unnatural about this storm. Perhaps because moments before, there wasn't even a cloud in the sky? It had gone from perfectly sunny day to terrible storm in a matter of seconds. Things like that just weren't normal.

She heard the Mew cry again, before the world around her was suddenly tinted a light pink. Her feet were knocked from under her, causing her to fall, but she never connected with the ground. A thin sphere, a vibrant pink orb, had formed around her, lifting her into the air. Mew had saved her, knowing the torrential downpour would soon be too much for the little girl.

It flew in front of her, holding its little paws out to its sides, like it was opening itself to a hug. It took a different action, however, and she could feel waves of soothing energy flowing through the bubble, sinking straight into her mind. Hypnosis, she knew. It was putting her to sleep.

Before her eyelids slid shut, there was one final thing that she noticed. The Mew seemed to shift, its form taking on a more violet color. It got bigger, and more humanoid, but still kept its main shape. As her eyes closed, she could have sworn its eyes changed from the playful, calm pools of blue they'd been before, to a deep purple. They also seemed like an angry glare.

{Hey! Wake up! Wake up!}

There was a slight pressure on her chest. It felt like a small animal was sitting on her. She could distinctly make out the shapes of four little paws on her chest, and a fluffy, vulpine tail brushing across her face.

She rolled over, causing whatever was on her to fall off. The voice that had spoken into her head telepathically let out a surprised cry. Moments later, she felt a small snout, nuzzling into her cheek.

{Come on, Sumi! He's waiting for you!}

The voice was high-pitched, like a child's. It was familiar, but she was still too tired to really focus. She felt something warm against her chest, warm and fuzzy, and quickly wrapped her arms around it. It let out a small gasp, probably of surprise.

A sudden sharp pain in her arm snapped her out of her sleep. She jolted up, the blankets thankfully catching what she was holding so she wouldn't end up throwing it by accident. She looked down at her arm, a small bite mark in it. It wasn't hard enough to break the skin, but it still stung a little bit.

{Finally. I'm sorry I had to bite you, but you weren't waking up!}

She focused her violet eyes down at the small animal sitting in front of her. Quickly reaching to her bedside table, she grabbed her brush, going through her deep crimson hair. "Zee, why wake me up? I was dreaming." She said in a tired voice.

Zee, the small, foxlike Pokémon sitting on her lap tilted his head with a small grin on its face. {I guess you don't want to start your journey today? You know, the one you've only been planning for the last year and a half?} he asked, bringing a paw up to clean the deep grey fur, paying attention to the crimson tips of his paws.

Sumi rubbed her eyes, trying to get the drowsiness out. "That was today?" she asked. She took a quick glance at her clock, the cute Poliwhirl-shaped device with the clock face where the swirl should have been. It was almost noon! "Oh no! The Professor's waiting for me!" she said, springing off of her bed to her feet. She darted around her room, brushing the rest of the way through her waist-high hair as she grabbed the cloths she'd decided to go on her journey in.

She pulled her royal purple tank top on, pulling the flared separated sleeves on and adjusting them until she was comfortable. She pulled her knee-high, ice-blue skirt with the royal purple trim on and using one of her black belts to buckle it up. To finish the outfit, she pulled on a pair of black, transparent socks with black dress shoes.

Zee pulled Sumi's blankets up with her mouth, effectively making her bed for her. She sat down, watching her human partner. Her deep grey fur, almost black, had been cleaned earlier this morning. Her small body was foxlike and lithe. Her head had a thick tuft of grey fur on the top, a splash of crimson on the tip, the tuft positioned between her large lupine ears. He was a special Pokémon, one that Sumi's father had brought back from a faraway land called the Unova region. He'd called him a Zorua, something that was hard enough to find in Unova, and nowhere to be found in Kanto, where she was from.

Sumi grabbed her backpack, the purple one with the patch of a Butterfree sewn onto the pouch. She knew she'd need it for what was going to happen.

Today was her tenth birthday. She was going to be going on her Pokémon adventure soon. She'd been talking to Professor Oak about it for months, getting ready for it for the past eighteen months He had decided that since she already had a starting Pokémon, her precious Zorua, he'd not worry about going to capture any of the starting Pokémon he'd normally get if anyone in Pallet was getting ready to leave on their journey. Zorua would be her starter.

She was admittedly scared, but she was also excited. This was something that every 10-year-old went through in her town, something every 10-year-old would dream of. It was her turn. She and her little Zorua would be setting off together.

There was just one thing standing in the way when she'd gotten downstairs.

"Happy birthday, sweetie!" her mom shouted as soon as she came down.

"Morning mom." Sumi said happily, coming down and sitting at the table. She figured her mom would have made her breakfast, the least she could do before she left home was spend some time with her.

Sitting at her spot on the table was a small box next to the large breakfast her mother had made her. Zee leapt up onto the table, starting to munch on a small bowl of Pokémon food that sat next to Sumi's plate.

"I can't believe you're already leaving home… You're still just a kid…" her mom said, coming up and sitting in the chair next to her.

"Yeah, but you knew this was coming, mom." Sumi said. She wrapped her arms around her mom, smiling, but there was a sadness to her smile. She'd been preparing, but she was still sad to leave her family.

Her mom giggled, grabbing the present on the table and holding it out to her. "Here, I wanted you to have this. My mother gave this to me before I started my journey at your age. I thought you'd like it." She said, watching her.

Sumi opened the small, blue box, taking out the contents of it. It was a black choker, a thin piece of leather with a figure of a violet-winged Beautifly hanging from it. She picked it up, smiling. "Thanks mom. I'll always treasure it." She said. Her mom pulled her hair up a little, mostly to expose her neck, while Sumi reached up and fixed it onto her neck.

"I got one for you too, Zee." Her mom said with a smile. She held up a small collar with the same emblem on it. "It was worn by my Charizard, back when she was just a little Charmander. You just need to adjust it if Zee ever decides he wants to evolve. You know, size change and all." Her mom said as she fastened the collar around Zee's neck.

Zee looked down at himself, a small smile on his face. He spinned around a couple of times, watching the little amulet swing back and forth. {It's pretty! Thanks!} He said with a large smile

Sumi went to work on her breakfast, admiring the choker and the collar as she did. It didn't take her that long, mostly because she was rushing to ensure she didn't take so long so she could get started on her journey.

When she was done, she stood up, bringing hers and Zee's dishes to the dishwasher. Zee followed at her side, leaping up to stand next to the sink as Sumi took care of their dishes, watching her.

It was a short goodbye. Sumi didn't want to stick around too long, knowing that if she waited, she'd have second thoughts about leaving, maybe decide not to leave at all. She didn't want that to happen.

She took a deep breath and let it out, looking down at Zee next to her. The little Pokémon looked back up at her with a confident grin, showing she was ready. Together, the two took off down the road. One quick stop at Professor Oak's lab, and then their journey was ready to begin.


	2. Chapter 2 - Getting Started

"Hello? Is anyone here?"

Sumi stepped into the large, white building at the top of the path. She looked around, looking at all of the machinery inside. There were quite a bit of flashing lights, computer screens showing who knows what, and even some healing equipment for Pokémon, something that the Professor used constantly.

"What do you want, little girl?" a voice asked from a doorway across the main room. It sounded like whoever it was, was the same age as her, yet it also sounded arrogant. And familiar. She turned, seeing who it was. A boy in a purple long-sleeved shirt stepped into the room, a small smirk on his face. She narrowed her eyes, remembering who this boy was, with his brown messy hair that always stuck out in front.

"I could ask you the same thing, Blue! I thought you'd be gone on your own adventure by now!" Sumi said, folding her arms. She knew this guy only because he used to pick on her all the time. When she used to talk about wanting to become a Pokémon Master, Blue would always try to rain on her parade, constantly mentioning that he had an advantage, being the grandson of a Pokémon Professor and all.

Blue laughed a bit, the same arrogant smirk on his face as he tossed a Pokéball into the air and caught it, repeating this gesture multiple times. "I was helping my gramps with something before I took off. Too bad you got here so late, he's already out of Pokémon from the new batch of trainers!" he said in an overconfident tone.

{Joke's on you, dummy!} Zee said in his usual cheery voice, stepping into the main room and sitting next to Sumi.

Blue raised an eyebrow, looking at the little Zorua with a confused look. "What's that thing? I've never seen anything like that here." He said, almost in a mumble. He was talking to himself, obviously confused.

He pulled a small, red object out of his pocket, something that looked like a thin book, but opening the cover of it revealed some buttons. Probably something he'd gotten from the Professor before she'd arrived. It suddenly spoke, speaking in a computerized voice.

_Zorua. The Tricky Fox Pokémon. To protect themselves from danger, they hide their true identities by transforming into people and Pokémon._

"A transforming Pokémon? Like a Ditto or something?" Blue asked, looking curious.

"What is that thing?" Sumi asked, tilting her head a bit in confusion. She was looking directly at the red device, the Professor not having mentioned anything about it when he'd been talking to her those months before.

"It's called a Pokédex. It's like a portable encyclopedia on all of the things I've found out and documented so far." An older voice suddenly said matter-of-factly, stepping up behind Blue.

It was the one that Sumi had come here looking for. An old man, maybe in his 50's or 60's. He was in a long, white lab coat, which fit perfectly for his job as a Pokémon Professor. His hair was a sandy blond, probably used to be brown but his age and all his hours out in the field having bleached it.

"Aww, Gramps, I was going to tell her that myself!" Blue said, though he just seemed a bit annoyed that the Professor had beaten him to the punch.

"Don't you have a journey to start, Blue? When you said you had to leave, I thought you meant to start on your own journey, not to come out here and pick on Sumire." The Professor said, nudging him forward slightly. He'd always been the one to come to the rescue in the past when Blue would start to tease her. She was confident she could handle it herself, but the Professor didn't want his grandson fighting with anyone. Blue's sister also came out to try to help sometimes, though it was still mostly the Professor.

"Yeah, whatever. Let's see if you can even catch up to me, little girl!" Blue said as he walked over to her. She stepped aside so he could leave, closing the door behind him a bit harder than she wanted to.

"Sorry about that, Sumire. But I think he'll be a good challenge for you in the future." The Professor said, motioning for her to come close. He smiled. "I can already tell he envies you a bit. He'd never admit it, but you got your first Pokémon before him, and one that he's never even seen before. He's probably going to train hard to make sure he stays ahead of you, if I know him. I want you to do the same thing, all right?" The Professor asked, smiling warmly at her.

She nodded. "All right. I'll do my best. Both Zee and I'll do everything we can to stay ahead of him! After all, there can only be one Champion in the Pokémon League, right?" Sumi asked.

Zee nodded. {Only one! It's gonna be Sumi!} he said happily, with his little smirk.

The Professor chuckled, pulling out another Pokédex. "Here, I've prepared this one especially for you. It's already keyed in with your ID, so no other Trainer can use it to claim to be you. But don't go losing it. It's very expensive to make, and I can't make you another one." He said.

She took it, looking at it with a smile. "All right. I promise I'll be careful with it. Thank you so much, Professor Oak!" She said happily.

{How does it work?} Zee asked curiously, leaping up to cling to Sumi's shoulder, mostly so he could get a better look.

"Just open in and aim it at whatever Pokémon you want to know about. Go ahead and aim it at your Zorua, and press this button here." Oak said, pointing to a small square button on the inside.

Zee jumped to the floor to make it easier to aim. {I'm ready!} He said, sitting down.

Sumi nodded, moving the top edge of the Pokédex to aim it at Zee. It whirred to life, just as Blue's had. It spoke in the same computerized voice.

_Zorua. The Tricky Fox Pokémon. To protect themselves from danger, they hide their true identities by transforming into people and Pokémon._

{That's pretty cool! Now you've got like a special book that reads to you about Pokémon!} Zee said.

"Yes. And it's connected to Pokémon labs from the other regions as well. You'll be able to get information about any Pokémon you find." Oak explained.

"Thank you! This is so cool!" Sumi exclaimed.

"You'd better get going if you're going to be catching up with my grandson. But before I forget, you'd better take these with you." Oak said, holding out a small, round pouch. It looked like the same material that her backpack was made from.

"What's this?" Sumi asked.

"It's something special. It'll keep you from having to carry more Pokéballs than your backpack has room for." Oak said. He placed the small pouch on the side of her bag, within quick reach if she needed it. "It functions like the PC. There are small slots inside that hold the different Pokéballs, but it'll only seem like it holds one at a time. Once a ball is taken out of the slot, another one gets transferred in from a storage space you can also activate from a computer." He explained.

"Okay, I think I see. But how do I put more balls in there?" Sumi asked.

"Simple. There's an extra slot inside that'll transfer them back into the storage unit. And if you ever find more types of balls out there than there are slots, just come back to me. More are in production every day by the other Professors of the other regions." He explained.

She nodded. "All right. Thanks!" she said happily.

Oak smiled, then glanced down at her belt. "Wait, where is Zorua's ball?" he asked.

Sumi looked at her belt, at the small piece that had small slots for holding the six Pokéballs she'd be carrying to form her party. "Zorua's ball?" she asked. Her father had never given her a ball when he gave her Zorua. He'd said the little guy had followed him over, he hadn't captured him or anything. He wasn't a Trainer himself.

{I don't have one of those things.} Zee said, a confused look on his face.

"I see. Then it's a good thing I had this prepared. I had the feeling something like this would happen." Oak said, going over to a small shelf.

{Why do I even need one? All those things are, are portable prisons!} Zee said with an annoyed look. With a small huff, he turned his head away.

"Without having a Pokéball, the Pokémon isn't officially in your Pokémon team. League Rules are very clear on this. You can't battle with wild Pokémon, and your Zorua would be considered wild. Don't worry, I'm sure you'd like this one, Zorua." Oak said. He turned towards the two of them, holding out a strange ball. This one seemed to be custom-made, probably something he'd worked on just for this moment. He and Sumi's father had been great friends, so they had probably planned this out that day that her father had brought her Zorua.

This ball looked like a normal Pokéball, but the crimson on top was darker than normal, almost to match the splash of red on the tuft of fur on a Zorua's head. The bottom of the ball, instead of being white like normal, was a deep grey, the same color as the rest of Zorua's fur.

Sumi took the ball, kneeling down next to Zee. She held it out, smiling lightly. "Just to make it official? Please?" she asked. She knew Zee didn't like confined spaces, but she wanted to be able to battle with him in the future.

Zee looked down for a moment, almost as if he was thinking. Then he looked back up at her. {I guess so. I mean, if I'm your Pokémon and all, I'll need to be official and everything. Just promise I can stay out afterwards?} he asked, his usual smirk returning to his face.

She nods. "I promise. You don't have to be in the ball if you don't want to." She said.

Zee took another step forward, nudging the middle button of the ball with his little nose. The ball opened, a red light coming out of the center. It enveloped Zee, his little body seeming to disappear, becoming part of the red energy. The ball pulled him in, closing after him. The button flashed red a couple of times, probably from Zee trying to resist escaping the ball. After a few moments, however, the button made a small clicking noise, the flashing coming to a stop.

"And now you're all set." Oak said, smiling.

Sumi held the ball in front of her. "Come on out, Zee!" she said.

The ball opened like it had before, this time the energy being red. It came from the ball, hitting the ground. It formed back into the little Zorua, who shook a few times, happy about being free again, out of the confines of the ball.

Sumi pressed the button on the front of the ball. With a small electrical hum, it shrank in her hand, becoming about a third the size that it was before. She put it into the first of the six slots on her belt with a small smile on her face. "Okay then. Shall we get going, Zee?" she asked.

Zee smirked lightly, leaping up onto Sumi's shoulder. {Yeah. Let's go. I want to get strong enough to wipe that grin off of Blue's face!} he said.

"Just be careful out there. The first thing you should do is go to Pewter City. That's the closest city with a Pokémon Gym. You'll need to pass through Viridian City to get there, though." Oak told them.

Sumi looked confused. "Gyms? Why would Zee and I need to go to the Gyms?" she asked.

"You didn't actually think you would be able to get into the Pokémon League just like that, did you? In order to prove you're worthy of battling in the League, you'll need to go to the different Gyms in the different cities spread across Kanto, and pass the Gym Leader's test to gain the badges needed to enter the Pokémon League Championship Challenge." Oak explained.

Sumi looked down in thought. "Okay, so I guess that's a change from our original plan, right Zee? We'll go get all of those badges, and I'll become the next Pokémon Champion! Blue won't stand a chance against me!" she said, pumping her fist into the air excitedly.

{Let's go then!} Zee said with a grin.

"Yeah! Thanks, Professor! I'll call to check in from time to time!" Sumi said before running out the door. She ran immediately for the road to the next city, Viridian City. There was supposed to be one of those Gyms there as well, but rumors had spread all the way to Pallet Town that the owner of the Gym had disappeared. Because of that, the doors had been locked, and nobody's seen or heard from the leader since. It was a strange occurrence, and because of that, she may have to skip that Gym. Pass through and get to Pewter City, just as the Professor had told her.

She turned her head to look at Zee, smiling happily. "You ready, partner?" she asked.

Zee nodded, sitting comfortably on her shoulder. {Yeah! Let's go prove we can beat that Pokémon League!} he said happily.

With that, the two headed off on what they knew would be their greatest adventure. One that would take them far and wide, and gain them experiences they could only dream about.

And Sumi was ready.


	3. Chapter 3 - Uninvited Guests

Sumi yawned. She put her hands behind her head, a bored look on her face.

They seemed to be getting nowhere. The scenery around them hadn't changed for the past couple of hours. She and Zee were still on a dirt path, the rolling hills around them seeming to extend for miles in every direction. There were trees dotting the landscape here and there, but they were scarce.

{Sumi, my legs are tired… It feels like we've been walking for ages! And we haven't even met up with a single Pokémon yet!} Zee complained.

Sumi looked around. "Maybe if we got off of the path we'd find one? Though I think it _is_ time to stop for lunch…" she said. She walked over to a large tree. She sat down at the base of it, leaning her back against the trunk.

Zee sat next to her, stretching out in the shade of the large oak. {I can take a little nap here, right?} he asked, padding up. He used his tail like a broom, sweeping the excess leaves away from around the little spot he'd claimed before laying down, curling up.

"You want to sleep now? But I was going to go ahead and get the lunch my mom made us out." Sumi said, pulling her backpack off of her back and resting it on her lap.

Zee looked up, his ears perking. The word "Lunch" seemed to be like a magic word, immediately capturing his attention. {I guess my nap can wait until my stomach's full!} he said, his usual grin returning to his face. He got back to his feet, getting down low to stretch, very catlike.

Sumi giggled, unzipping the large pouch on the front of her pack. She pulled out a small container, one her mother had packed into her bag while she'd been eating breakfast. It contained a few sandwiches. From the smell of it, they were Combee Honey and Pecha Berry Jam! There was also a small container of large, brown, marshmallow-shaped things, food she knew her mom had made especially for Zee.

She pulled one of the sandwiches out, placing some of Zee's food in the lid of the container and setting it on the knee opposite her friend. Zee hopped up onto her lap, laying down and getting comfortable before getting to work eating the bit of food he'd been given.

Sumi slung her bag back over her shoulders, and then leaned back against the tree, watching the clouds pass as she enjoyed her sandwich. "I wonder what types of people the Gym Leaders are? I doubt they'll be easy to defeat." She said, a curious look on her face.

Zee looked up at her, his usual smirk seeming to get wider. {Tough or not, you know we'll be able to defeat them! We have to!} he said, pressing his paw comfortingly against her leg.

She nodded. "Yeah, I know. Mom's always talked about the Indigo League here in Kanto that she wasn't able to compete in after she met dad…" she said, her voice fading a bit. It had been almost three years since her father had disappeared, leaving her and her mother to have only each other to rely on. Well, them and Zee. He hadn't sent any word, nothing on his whereabouts, or what he was doing. They didn't even know if he was still alive.

{I liked your dad. He smelled really good when I saw him.} Zee said, closing his eyes with a small smile as he relaxed. {That's why I followed him onto his big boat.}

"I remember dad having a Vileplume as one of the Pokémon he brought with him. You may have been smelling some of Vileplume's Sweet Scent." Sumi explained.

{Don't care. Smelled good.} Zee said before going back to eating his food.

Sumi sighed. The little Zorua was so easy to satisfy sometimes, it was almost too cute. Zee was the perfect partner for her. She giggled slightly, going back to eating her sandwich.

Zee's ears suddenly flicked. He'd heard the attack before the attacker had gotten close.

What sounded like a loud roaring noise echoed from in front of them. Zee sprung to his feet, using his quick reflexes to get them out of trouble. He lept up, head-butting Sumi aside, managing to get her out of the way as a large, grey shape seemed to fly out of nowhere. It barreled past, straight into the tree. Splinters of wood and bark flew from the impact, the tree shuddering violently, but the roots were strong enough to avoid it toppling over.

Sumi screamed as she heard the thing pass. She couldn't see what it was at first, the creature having kicked up a cloud of loose dirt as it passed. But as the dust settled, she could see it. It seemed to be a large, grey Pokémon, standing on four legs. It looked like it was made of either a hard rock or grey plate armor, large plated ridges running along its spine. The horn positioned at the large plate running down its forehead seemed to be lodged in the tree.

"W-what is that thing?" Sumi asked, the fear evident in her voice.

{I don't know! It's dangerous though! Check that talking thing that the jerk used to check me out at the lab!} Zee said back. He took a step forward, digging his little paw into the dirt a little and growling deep in his throat at the new opponent.

"Oh, right! The Pokédex!' Sumi cried. She reached into the pouch on the side of her bag, opposite the side Professor Oak had attached the ball pouch. She pulled out the red device, aiming the small sensor on the front at the creature.

_Rhyhorn. The Spikes Pokémon. Its powerful tackles can destroy anything. However, it is too slow witted to help people work._

"A Rhyhorn?" Sumi asked, looking at it with a curious look. "Why did it suddenly attack us like that?" she asked.

Zee watched it pull its horn out of the tree, but curiously enough, it didn't turn to face them. Instead, it turned its attention on the sandwich that had fallen on the ground after Zee knocked Sumi out of the way of the charge.

{A lot of Pokémon are territorial, so that could be part of it. But it looks like this one was just hungry.} he answered, tilting his head slightly, but not taking his eyes off of the Rhyhorn. It had, after all, just attacked his Master. He wasn't too thrilled about that.

"Maybe I can catch it while its distracted with the food…" Sumi said, taking one of the Pokéballs out of her ball pouch. She gripped it tightly, whispering a little prayer to herself as she pressed the button to make it grow to its full size.

{Be careful, Sumi…} Zee said cautiously.

Sumi quickly threw the ball at the Rhyhorn. "Pokéball, go!" she shouted.

It hit the creature before it knew what was happening, it only having time to glance over at her before it was called into the ball. Sumi clenched her fists, a tense look on her face as she watched it shake one time… two times… three times…

_Click!_

A happy expression suddenly danced across her face as she ran forward, grabbing the ball and holding it up. "Yes! I caught it! I caught a Rhyhorn!" she said with a smile.

{Great. You've managed to catch the thing that almost trampled you…} Zee muttered, padding back to the leftover food. {Good, it didn't touch my lunch…} he muttered.

"Come on, can't you just be happy for me? I caught my first Pokémon, all on my own!" Sumi whined a bit.

Zee looked over, looking a little concerned, but suddenly jumped slightly with a scared look, as if startled by something. His eyes widened, and his mouth dropped. {S-Sumi? We need to run!} he said loudly.

"What? Why?" Sumi asked, turning to see what Zee was so afraid of.

She gasped, her eyes widening and her expression also turning to one of fear. Where that last Rhyhorn had come from, there were at least five or six of them standing right behind her!

{Because that Pokémon you caught was part of a herd, and they usually don't take too kindly to their family getting caught!} Zee said suddenly.

One of the Rhyhorn roared loudly, the others following its lead in unison. They each took a step forward, seeming to crouch down a get. They were getting ready to charge.

{Sumi, run! Now!} Zee shouted, bounding quickly to get in between her and the Rhyhorn.

Sumi nodded, turning on her heel and running as fast as her legs could take her. She knew she could never outrun a Pokémon like that for long, but she had to at least try. She couldn't help but scream along the way, terrified out of her wits.

Zee ran up next to her, keeping pace with her but being careful not to run in front of her. He didn't want to leave her behind. He had to protect her after all.

"Somebody help!" Sumi shouted, tears forming in her eyes. She didn't want to end up dying on her first day away from home! That would make her the worst trainer in existence, not the best like she wanted to be!


	4. Chapter 4 - A New Friend

Run. That's all she could think about. Was to run. She knew she wasn't nearly as fast as a Rhyhorn, much less the herd that was after her. But she also knew that if she stopped, she'd have no chance.

She didn't have to run far before she'd gotten into a forest. The trees weren't too dense, but they were dense enough to slow down the Rhyhorn. She didn't care. She kept running.

"Zee! Is there anything you can do?" She shouted in panic. Her breathing was starting to deepen. She was quickly running out of energy, and it was scaring her. At this rate, she wouldn't be able to get away from the Rhyhorn.

{Nothing that can stop this whole group! I'm sorry!} Zee shouted back to her. Sumi kind of felt sorry for him. He was trying to stay calm in this horrific situation, but the panic was evident in his voice.

The time to stop running, however, came upon them. The Rhyhorn had led them into the side of a small cliff. It was just too high for Sumi to make it up on her own, and there didn't seem to be any other people around to help her up.

She turned around, pressing her back against the cliff face. Zee stood in front of her protectively, growling deep in his throat again. He didn't know what he could do, but he knew he'd have to protect her at any cost.

The Rhyhorn appeared around them, coming between the trees and cutting off their escape. Sumi's breath caught in her throat as she saw what was happening. A path was made between them, a larger, dinosaur-like Pokémon coming up. This one was about twice the size of the others, and it was standing on two legs. It didn't have the plate armor-like skin, instead having a grey flesh that looked as hard as a rock. It only had one horn, on the tip of its snout, but its rock-hard skin jutted out from the top of its head between its ears, acting like another horn.

"W-what is this thing?" Sumi asked in fear.

Zee growled again, barking cutely at the thing. In response, it just roared back at him, stomping on the ground a few times, probably trying to appear menacing. While all of this was happening, Sumi pulled her Pokédex out. She wanted to know what it was. Perhaps the device could tell her why it was attacking her?

_Rhydon. The Drill Pokémon. Standing on its hind legs freed its forelegs and made it smarter. It is very forgetful, however._

"Forgetful? Why can't it just forget me and go away?" Sumi asked in panic.

{I've got some bad news… It just said that it's the mother of the Rhyhorn you captured!} Zee said in a panic.

"Really? Oh no… I just wanted to start building my team! I'm sorry, Rhydon!" Sumi shouted with a guilty look.

The Rhydon roared once more, getting onto all fours and growling. It was preparing to charge her!

"Capture, on!" a voice suddenly echoed through the trees.

A small, red object, looking like a spinning top, came from above her, at the top of the cliff. It flew down, spinning around Rhyhorn, seeming to draw circles around it.

Actually, looking closer, Sumi could see it _was_ drawing circles around it! A thin, yellow trail of light was following the top, forming a thin circle around the Rhydon. It watched the top curiously, more confusion than rage suddenly in its face. The rest of the Rhyhorn looked worried and shocked, not sure what was happening.

A few seconds passed, and the top flew back to where it came from. The light ring around the Rhydon suddenly closed in, but didn't bind it like it looked like it did. Instead, the Rhydon glowed with a golden aura for a few seconds. It got back up onto its hind legs, becoming calm.

"Capture complete!" the same voice from before echoed. Directly after, a young man hopped down from the top of the cliff, landing in a crouch next to Sumi.

She jumped, not expecting this new visitor.

The boy walked up to the Rhydon, smiling warmly. "Go back to your territory. You don't need to bother this trainer anymore." He said in a friendly tone.

The Rhydon looked around to the rest of the Rhyhorn herd, making its roar once again. It turned, walking back the way they came. The rest of the Rhyhorn all roared back in response, also turning and following it out.

The boy turned to face Sumi, looking worried. "Are you all right?" he asked.

Now that she wasn't in a panic, she could get a good look at him. He was wearing black pants with yellow trim around the base of each leg, a belt around the rim holding a small pouch at his waist. His shirt was plain, the bottom half being black while the top half was white. A red, short-sleeved jacket hung on his shoulders, the trim around the neck and high-cut base of it yellow, while the trim on the short sleeves were a white color. An emblem was patched onto the right shoulder, a globe that stood above and upside-down triangle, looking almost like a jewel. He also wore a pair of fingerless gloves, black with a white trim around the wrist, with a red patch on the front. There was a watch around his right wrist, a blue disk rimmed in yellow with a red border, the band of which is white. To complete the outfit, a yellow bandanna hung around his neck, and a pair of red-rimmed goggles sat on his head, holding back the bangs of his short, light brown hair.

He looked only slightly older than her, maybe only around 16 years of age.

She nodded, smiling slightly. "Y-yeah. Thanks. I thought I was done for!" she said happily.

Zee stepped in front of her with a protective look, glancing up at the man suspiciously. {This guy seems nice, but how did he stop the Rhydon like that? He didn't even use a Pokémon of his own.} he asked.

"I was wondering the same thing. What is that thing you used? It looked like one of the toys I used to play with Zee with." She asked curiously.

He smiled, holding up his wrist with the strange watch. "You mean to tell me you haven't seen a Ranger in action before?" he asked with a confident smirk.

Zee growled. {Ranger? You're not a bad guy or anything, are you? Because if you can control Pokémon like that, you could be dangerous…} he said in a low voice.

The boy knelt down, holding his hand out to Zee, looking like he was trying to coax over a Skitty or something. "A talking Pokémon? That's really rare… Don't worry, little guy. I'm not a bad guy. My Capture Styler, what I used earlier, isn't to control Pokémon. It conveys the feelings of the ranger, of our love for Pokémon, to them on an emotional level. It's to show they're in no danger, that we're friends." He said with a friendly smile.

Zee padded up to him, sniffing his fingers a bit. {But it listened to what you said, after it tried to bulldoze over me and Sumi…} he mumbled curiously, sitting back on his haunches and looking up at him.

"That's because I was able to calm it down. Most Pokémon, when we befriend it like that, they're willing to help us. When I conveyed my feelings, it understood that I was concerned for your trainer, and decided to leave her alone. You wouldn't want to upset a friend, would you?" he asked.

Zee looked down in thought, then shook his head. {No, I guess not.} he muttered before walking back up to sit next to Sumi.

"By the way, my name's Skylar. Skyy for short." He said. He held out his hand, walking up to Sumi with it extended as if asking for a handshake.

Sumi slowly reached out, cautious of the stranger, before taking his hand, shaking it timidly. "I'm Sumire. But you can call me Sumi." She said.

"It's very nice to meet you, Sumi. Beginning Pokémon Trainer I'm guessing?" he asked.

She nodded. "Yeah. Zee and I just left home this morning." She said.

"I see. And your Zee. I haven't seen a Pokémon like him anywhere around this area. He's got a shape almost like a Flareon, but with the beautiful, fine fur and an attitude kind of like a Vulpix. What is he exactly?" he asked.

Zee jumped back up on Sumi's shoulder, his smirk returning alongside an arrogant gleam in his eyes. {I'm beautiful like a Vulpix? This guy's cool. I like him.} he said with a small snicker, impressed by the compliments.

"This is my little Zee. He's a Pokémon my dad brought home from an adventure at a place called Unova. He's been with me for a few years, and Professor Oak said since we were already so close, I could use him as my beginner Pokémon." She said, tilting her head slightly to rub her cheek against the side of Zee's head.

Zee cuddled against her cutely, closing his eyes happily. {We're partners! And her dad smelled really good.} he said.

"Unova? I was positioned over there before I got reassigned here in Kanto." The Skyy explained to them.

{You've been to my home?} Zee asked curiously.

"I'm not sure. I've never seen any Pokémon like you before, even over there. You must be incredibly rare." He said. He suddenly glanced down at his Styler. A small beeping noise had started coming from the small device. "Oh, I'm getting there later than I thought I would…" he mumbled.

"Is something wrong? We're not keeping you from something important, are we?" Sumi asked.

"Well, yes and no. I have plenty of time to make it to where I was going. I'm just trying to get there early so I can start the investigation today instead of tomorrow." He explained. He looked down in thought. "Wait a moment… You're on your way to Viridian City, aren't you?" he asked.

She nodded. "Yes. I heard there's a Pokémon Gym there, and I'd like to challenge the leader. I need to get prepared for the Pokémon League!" she said confidently. Her smile then slowly faded, and she looked down. "At least that's what I was hoping for. I heard he's gone missing."

{Which means we're just passing through. Pewter City's our next stop, and then some sort of cave. And that's all I really remember from the map.} Zee explained.

"Then in that case, would you mind if I accompany you? I'm heading there as well, to investigate the missing Gym Leader. I won't interfere with you capturing any Pokémon, but I won't be helping you either." He asked.

She nodded. "Yeah! That sounds fine!" she said, happy she'd at least have some human companionship for a while.

{Do you have any Pokémon? Or do you release all the ones you control? Like the Rhydon back there?} Zee asked.

"I do have a Pokémon, but it isn't mine officially. Rangers get a partner. The only one we're allowed to bring out of its natural habitat. I've been my best friend from his Trapinch stage." He said, smiling a bit as if he were reliving some good memories. "Unfortunately, he isn't here right now. He's back in Unova, helping the Professor over there with some things, then he's going to meet me back at the main Ranger Base here in Kanto."

"Okay, I see. Then which direction is the town?" Sumi asked. She got a bit of an embarrassed look. "When the Rhyhorn was chasing me earlier, we kind of got turned around. I'm not sure where we are now, or even what direction we're facing." She said.

He chuckled, looking up at the sky. "Actually, it's starting to get dark. I think we need to think about making a camp for the night." He suggested.

{Camp? Why not just walk at night?} Zee asked, looking confused.

"Because if you or your trainer don't get enough sleep, what would happen if you ran into a wild Pokémon that didn't let you just run away from it? If you're tired, you can't attack very well, and if Sumi's tired, then she wouldn't be very strategic or helpful in battle." Skyy explained. He glanced at Sumi with a worried look. "You should know things like this if you're going to be a good trainer."

Sumi looked a bit embarrassed. "Well that's half of the journey is to learn things like this, isn't it?" she asked.

He nodded. "Yeah, I guess you're right." He said. He glanced around, then started walking. "The city's this way. It's about a day's walk." He told them.

Sumi nodded, following him. "Thanks. And I was wondering. Do you know any of the Gym Leaders? I'd like to know about them before I face them." she asked.

He shook his head. "No, I know of them. But I don't really know anything about them." He confessed.

{We don't need to know about them! I'm strong enough to kick their butts!} Zee said with his confident little smirk.

Sumi giggled. She was happy that he was so confident. "Then onto Pewter City!" she said with a happy look.

"Well, Viridian City first. That's my destination. But I'll point you in the direction of Pewter when we get there." Skyy said with a small smile.

She nodded. "Thank you. I appreciate your kindness." She told him.

{Well I'm sleepy. Wake me when you get there, or if something happens.} Zee said, squirming his way into Sumi's still-open backpack. After some adjustment to get more comfortable, the small Pokémon grew still, trying to get to sleep.

With that, they headed on their way to Viridian City, leaving the ordeal with the Rhyhorn behind them.


	5. Chapter 5 - Enemy

Sumi sat up from the small mat she was sleeping on, stretching with a yawn. She looked around in the warm morning sunlight. The small campsite was a little out of place in the middle of the forest, she had to admit. If it weren't for Skyy having brought an extra mat, she'd have to sleep on the cold, hard ground.

She groaned slightly. She wasn't used to anything but her own bed, so her awakening wasn't slow and gradual like normal. On the bright side, it meant that Zee didn't have to bite her awake this time.

"Morning, Sumi!" Skyy said from over by the small pit he'd dug for a campfire. He had a pan situated over it, and seemed to be making something. Now that she could focus, she noticed the smell of pancakes was starting to get stronger and stronger.

She stood, straightening out her clothing as she stretched. "Morning." She said with a sleepy smile as she walked over to him. "Can I help with anything?" she asked.

He shook his head, smiling. "Thanks, but I've got breakfast under control. Well, me and Zee." He said, motioning to her partner.

Zee was over by some small rocks, looking around. After a moment, he started kicking one over to them. He grinned as he got close, seeing her. {Good morning, Sumi!} he said with a happy tone to his voice. He kicked the rock over to Skyy, adding it to a ring around the fire they'd made, probably just in case to keep the fire from spreading.

"How'd you manage to light a fire out here? We don't have any Fire Pokémon, do we?" Sumi asked.

"Some Vulpix wandered by here earlier. I just needed to ask them for some help." Skyy explained. He pulled some paper plates out of his own backpack, finishing making the pancakes. He put the large one he'd just finished onto the plate, handing it to her with a plastic fork. "Here you go."

She smiled, taking it and sitting down to eat. "Thanks!" she said happily. After her first bite, however, she got an idea. She reached to her Pokéball belt pulling out the ball with her newly-captured partner, Rhyhorn. "Why not have our newest friend have some breakfast with us?" she asked.

{You mean that Rhyhorn that tried to kill you yesterday?} Zee asked with a skeptical look, laying down next to Skyy while he watched him cook.

She nodded with a bit of a glare. "Yes, that same one." She said. She held up the ball. "Rhyhorn, come on out!" she said. The flash of white light escaped the ball, the large Pokémon appearing in front of her. It looked at her with a bit of an angry look, which was usually normal for a newly captured Pokémon.

Zee leapt to his feet, growling as he got between Rhyhorn and Sumi. {Don't even think about trying to trample my partner again!} he said with a cautious look in his eye.

Sumi giggled, digging the plastic container of Pokémon food out of her backpack. She held it out to Rhyhorn, smiling sweetly. "Here. You're hungry, aren't you?" she asked.

The Rhyhorn turned towards her, cautiously stepping up to her. It walked around Zee, pretending like he wasn't even there. This made Zee growl, but the Rhyhorn didn't care. He sniffed the food in Sumi's hand before eating it, looking up at her with a grateful look.

Sumi smiled, petting the plates on his head with a smile. "I think it's time to make you officially part of my party, starting with a nickname… But what should I name you?" she asked herself.

Zee growled a little, looking away. {How about Bulldozer? It's apparently what he does best…} he complained.

"No, I think… Let's see… You were the son of the Rhydon, which I'm guessing was the leader of the herd… So maybe… I know! I'll call you Prince!" she said happily.

Prince made his roaring noise, but it sounded more satisfied than anything, looking happy at his new name. He rubbed up against her hand affectionately.

{He's saying he's sorry for attacking you before you caught him. He was hungry.} Zee said, looking away from him. Sumi could almost swear she saw jealousy in his face.

"It's okay. I didn't get hurt, thanks to Zee. And I made a new friend out of it. Just don't go charging into things when you're hungry again." She said with a smile.

Prince nodded, deciding to lay down next to her.

"After you're done eating, we should get going to Viridian. It's going to be another few hour's walk without my partner, but we should be able to get there around noon." He said, glancing up at the sky. The sun was out of view because of the trees, but it was easy to say that it was still really early, maybe about four hours or so after dawn.

Sumi continued to eat her food, just wanting to get to the next town as soon as she could. She was getting really anxious to start the gym challenge.

{Hey Sumi, can I ask you something serious…?} Zee asked suddenly.

Sumi looked at her friend curiously, nodding. "Of course. You can ask me anything." She said.

{Do… Do you think I'm weak…?} Zee asked, his large ears folding back suddenly.

A look of confusion crossed the young trainer's face. Zee had never acted like this before. Come to think of it, he'd been acting strange since Prince had been added to their party. "Of course not! Zee, why would you think you were weak?" she asked.

Zee walked up to her, placing a paw on her leg. {When Prince first attacked, I was only able to save you because I attacked you and not him… And then when the huge group of them showed up, I just froze! I couldn't do anything!} he said, hanging his head.

Sumi shook her head. "No, you were great. You were brave, and if it weren't for you, I'd probably be flat back at the bottom of that tree." She said with a smile.

"I think I know what Zee's talking about." Skyy cut in.

The two of them looked at him, a curious look on their faces.

"You said you got him a few years ago, right?" he asked.

She nodded. "Yeah. Dad brought him back over from one of his trips to another part of the world." Sumi answered.

"During that time, did you train him up at all?" Skyy asked.

Sumi shook her head this time. "Not really. I wasn't supposed to, so he'd be just beginning himself, like the other Pokémon the professor caught for the starter trainers." She said.

"And therein lies the problem." Skyy said with a smile. He knelt down next to Zee, brushing his fingers along his fur lightly. "You're not weak, Zee. You're just used to being pampered and living the easy life. It's a habit that you'll need to break if you want to be a powerful partner for Sumi." He told him with a confident smile.

Just the smile of the Ranger alone seemed to instill a sense of confidence inside the young Pokémon. His ears perked back up, and he got his usual smirk. {Yeah, you're right!} he said happily.

"That means we'll have to train harder to get you ready to fight the harder battles. That's okay with you, right Zee?" Sumi asked. She had a hint of worry to her voice, not wanting him to get too overconfident and overwork himself.

He nodded happily. {I'll do my best! I need to get strong!} he said.

"He's got guts, that's for sure. But does he have the strength to make those words a reality?" Skyy asked, a small smirk on his face.

Zee growled lightly. {Of course I do, dummy! I'm strong enough to do anything!} he said.

"Then let's go train up a little on our way to Viridian City! Maybe we can get some more Pokémon on our team on the way too?" Sumi said with a smile.

{Yeah, let's hurry!} Zee shouted, running off suddenly.

Sumi stood up, quickly calling back Prince into his Pokéball in a flash of red light. "Zee, wait! Don't run off without me!" she shouted after him. She ran after him, only glancing back for a moment to see what Skyy was doing. He was quickly packing his things, seeming to get ready to follow.

{Sumi, you're slow! Hurry up!} Zee shouted ahead of her. His voice was getting quieter, showing he was getting a bit farther away.

"Zee! Stop!" Sumi shouted suddenly. Her breath was starting to become deeper, more labored, as she started tiring out.

A sudden snapping sound suddenly echoed in front of her, followed by a flock of Pidgey getting spooked out of one of the trees ahead of her.

Sumi's heart leapt to her throat. Had something happened to her beloved Zorua? She couldn't bear the thought of him getting hurt like that!

{Sumi! Help! I'm stuck!}

She stopped, looking around. "Zee?" she called out.

{Look up!} She heard him say. She followed his direction, turning her gaze towards the treetops. What she saw made her gasp.

Little Zee was hanging from the higher branches of a tree. Indents in his fur showed that he was stuck in a thin net, probably woven from the strong threads of an Ariados, if she had to guess.

"What happened?" she asked in a surprised voice, looking around to try and find some lower tree branches to climb up and free him.

{I don't know! I was running, then suddenly I'm up here in this tree!} Zee said, panicking as he struggled. He bit into the net, growling, trying to tear through the threads.

"Just hold on! I'll try and figure out a way to get you down!" she said worriedly.

{Hurry! I smell someone nearby!} Zee said.

Sumi nodded, looking down in thought. "What about using your special move?" she asked.

Zee shook his head. {That move always makes me feel weak after I use it! Besides, it doesn't cut things!} he protested.

Sumi glanced at her hip, pulling Prince's Pokéball into view. I wonder if there's anything Prince can do to get you down…" she asked.

"Vul?" she heard nearby suddenly, breaking her out of her thoughts.

She turned in the direction of the voice, looking confused. "What?" she asked, mostly to herself, as she saw what had made the noise.

Sitting inside a hollowed out portion in the bottom of a thick tree was a small Pokémon. It looked like a small, reddish brown vulpine creature, almost with the same shape as her beloved Zorua. Its eyes were almond-shaped, a deeper brown than its fur, all a solid color. It had a lighter brown, almost orange, tuft of fur on its head, thick like Zorua's, but curling back cutely. Its tails were also very thick, the same color as the fur on its head. Six of them sprouted behind it, curling elegantly at the tips. The tips of its paws were a deep brown, extending halfway up each leg.

"What's that…?" Sumi asked, pulling her Pokédex out and activating it.

_Vulpix. The Fox Pokémon._ _When it is born, it has just one snow-white tail. The tail splits from its tip as it grows older._ _Inside Vulpix's body burns a flame that never goes out. During the daytime, when the temperatures rise, this Pokémon releases flames from its mouth to prevent its body from growing too hot._

"That must be one of the ones that Skyy had make the fire earlier…" Sumi mumbled to herself. She glanced from the Vulpix to the net, then back at it. "Fire can burn through webbing, so maybe it can help get my Zee down!" she said, pulling out a Pokéball.

{Sumi, hurry! I have a feeling something bad is about to happen!} Zee said, her usual smirk now replaced by a look of caution and worry.

"Here, I'll take care of it! Capture on!" Skyy's voice came from behind Sumi.

The top from the day before flew out from where his voice had come from. It circled around the Vulpix a few times, the ring appearing and closing in, making it glow gold for a moment. Afterwards, since she could see it this time, the top flew back to Skyy. His Styler had a small part of the top open, like a lid. The top flew over it, dropping into a now-exposed slot on top, the top coming back down, closing on top of it. "Capture complete." Skyy said. He pointed up into the tree. "Vulpix, use your Ember to free the Zorua!" he called out.

The Vulpix turned towards the net, taking a deep breath. It breathed out what seemed like burning hot embers, which immediately evaporated the webbing holding the net up.

Without anything left to hold him up, Zee fell from the branches of the tree. Sumi made sure to position herself under him, catching him as he got close to her. "Thanks. I wanted to catch it, though…" she complained.

"There wasn't any time! We have some uninvited guests here!" Skyy said, getting ready to fire the top out of his Styler again.

"What?" Sumi asked, looking around.

Laughter came from all sides of them. There were now shuffling noises. They'd somehow been surrounded! But whoever it was, they weren't showing themselves.

"Sorry, girlie, but that little Zorua is coming with us!" a deep voice said from somewhere in the shadows.

"How did a Zorua got over here to Kanto, though?" A second voice, this one slightly higher, asked. They both seemed to be male.

"Doesn't matter. The boss will want to have it!" the first one said again.

Sumi reached to her waist, grabbing Prince's Pokéball. "Who's there? Show yourselves!" she said loudly.

The laughter emanated from around her again. "This dumb kid thinks she can actually take us? Don't make us laugh, girl!" The first one said again.

"The ranger might have stood a chance, if his partner were here!" a third one said, this one sounding like woman.

Sumi gulped, getting nervous. "Zee, get ready… You may need to use your special move…." She told him under her breath.

Zee dug his feet into the ground, growling protectively. {I don't want to, but I might have to…} he muttered.

"I'm not sure what you guys are talking about, but Zee, try not to think about this as just staying away from these guys. Try to think of this as part of your training." Skyy said, still looking around, trying to find the source of the voice.

A figure suddenly stepped out of the brush around them, a large, tan rat Pokémon at his side. "I suggest you guys just give up now and hand over the Zorua. We're not above beating up a kid, and the ranger may make a nice gift, too!" a fourth voice, this one sounding like a younger man, said.

"What?" Sumi asked, getting confused at this. She looked up at Skyy. "Why would they want to kidnap you?" she asked.

Skyy shook his head "I have no idea… Maybe they want a prisoner or hostage so the other Rangers won't get in their way?" he suggested. He clenched his fist, readying his Styler. The slot opened on top, and now that she was paying more attention, Sumi noticed that the lid of the Styler was actually a small glass circle with small marks on the top, bottom, and both sides, showing it was an aiming reticle.

Sumi got a worried look like this, but she pulled her Pokédex out of her bag. She didn't know what this Pokémon was, but she was going to find out.

_Raticate. The Mouse Pokémon. The Evolved form of Rattata. It uses its whiskers to maintain its balance and will slow down if they are cut off. It whittles its constantly growing fangs by gnawing on hard things. It can chew apart cinder walls._

"A Raticate. It's an evolution." Sumi said, looking worried.

"This is going to be too easy!" The woman said as she also stepped out into the open. At her side was a floating, purple ball with a pair of large, amused eyes, and a smile that made her shiver. It was surrounded in a purple gas, that seemed to come off of it as if the Pokémon were part of the gas itself. Sumi held her Pokédex up to scan it.

_Gastly. The Gas Pokémon. It wraps its opponent in its gas-like body, slowly weakening its prey by poisoning it through the skin._ _It can sneak into any place it desires. However, it can be blown away by wind._

"They have a Gastly… This is going to be difficult…" Skyy muttered to Sumi. "Ghost-type Pokémon are immune to normal moves…"

The second voice she'd heard stepped out of the brush as well. "Just give up now and make it easier on the both of you." He said. Another strange Pokémon floating next to him, this one looking like a silver ball with an eye in the center. A pair of magnets were attached to either side of the ball, and there was a screw on the very top, and two smaller ones under the eye, near the magnets. Sumi turned her Pokédex onto that one.

_Magnemite. The magnet Pokémon._ _It is born with the ability to defy gravity. It floats in air on powerful electromagnetic waves. It discharges Thunder Wave and so on from the units at its sides, and feeds on electricity._

"Magnemite is an Electric-Type, and I think a Steel-Type... Prince should be able to handle it, if it doesn't know any Steel-Type moves yet…" Skyy muttered.

"Giving the trainer advice? Aren't Rangers supposed to stay out of the way of Trainers?" the fourth person said as he came into view. The Pokémon at his side was a long, purple snake with a yellow stripe at the base of its head, and a yellow rattler at the tip of its tail. Its eyes were an eerie yellow with a single, thin slit going through the middle to serve as the pupil. Sumi held her Pokédex up to check this one out as well.

_Ekans. The Snake Pokémon. It sneaks through grass without making a sound and strikes unsuspecting prey from behind._

All four of the people surrounding them had the same uniforms on. They were black, with white gloves and a white pair of boots on. A black hat sat on their head, and a red 'R' adorned the front of the black shirts.

"These uniforms… I've never seen them before. They don't have any stations in Unova…" Skyy revealed.

The one with the Raticate laughed. Having the evolved Pokémon, Sumi assumed this was their leader. "You fools don't know of the great Team Rocket? How fitting, the first time you hear of them is when you're going to lose everything to them!" he said.

"Wait, I heard that name on the news! Team Rocket is a band of Pokémon Thieves!" she said with a worried look.

"Thieves? Then I'll need to call for Officer Jenny to take them in…" Skyy mumbled, pressing a button on his Styler.

"Oh no you don't! Magnemite, use your Thunder Wave on the Ranger!" the second guy said, pointing at Skyy.

Magnemite floated up a bit, turning the magnets on its sides to face the ends at Skyy. "Magna!" it said in a robotic voice. It started to emanate golden pulses of energy from its body, aiming them to hit Skyy.

Skyy got a sudden strained look and fell to his knees, sparks coming from his Styler. Small sparks also danced around his body.

"Skyy! What happened? What's wrong?" Sumi asked, getting worried for her friend.

"I can't move… Thunder wave paralyzes opponents…" he grumbled, his body shaking a bit as he strained to move.

Sumi turned towards the Magnemite's trainer, pulling out Prince's ball. She tossed the Pokéball above her head. "Prince, I need your help!" she shouted.

With an eruption of white light, the Rhyhorn appeared next to Sumi. She caught the ball, shrinking it to the smaller size and clipping it back onto her belt.

Rhyhorn roared, sliding his back feet back on the ground to kick up some dirt. It roared, glaring at the opponents.

"Really? This is all you've got? This is going to be too easy!" the one with the Raticate said. He looked at the Magnemite's owner, pointing at Sumi. "Have your Magnemite use Thunder wave on them as well." He ordered.

The guy nodded. "Yes sir! Magnemite, use—" he started, but he was cut off suddenly.

Rhyhorn had rushed forward, taking the initiative and leaping up, using Horn Attack. His horn glowed, smashing into the Magnemite before it could launch the electrical waves at Sumi.

Zee came up to Sumi's side, growling at the bad guys. {This is our first battle. We'll get through it together.} he said.

Sumi nodded. She was hiding it under her look of seriousness and concentration, but she was excited. Her first battle, and she had Zee at her side. She took a deep breath, pointing at the one with the Raticate. "Zee, attack!"


	6. Chapter 6 - First Real Battle

Sumi clenched her fists, pointing at the Raticate in front of her. "Zee! Use your Pursuit on it!" she shouted.

Zee launched in front of Sumi, leaping into the air and coming down on the Raticate. His paw glowed a little as he did, knocking the Raticate back a few steps as he hit it, but it looked relatively unhurt.

Prince came up to stand next to Sumi. He'd knocked out the Magnemite with his Horn Attack, and was ready to receive more orders. The Rocket member called back the Magnemite he'd just defeated. He stepped back, being forced to retreat with the defeat of his Pokémon.

"Nice try." The one with the Raticate said. He laughed, looking at the woman with the Gastly and the man with the Ekans. "You two get the Zorua. Raticate and I'll get the Ranger." He ordered.

{Oh no you don't!} Zee shouted, leaping into the air. He came down on the Gastly, slashing his paw down in front of him to use Scratch. To his surprise, however, his paw went right through the ghost Pokémon!

"Ghosts… They can't be damaged by normal attacks…" Skyy grunted. His body was still paralyzed, making it so he couldn't stand. He was still in his kneeling position, forced to just watch the battle.

Zee just watched the Gastly for a moment. {I might have to use that move, Sumi…} he muttered.

"See if you can act fast enough! Ekans, use Wrap!" the Rocket member shouted with a grin, pointing at Zee.

"Ekans!" the Ekans shouted, launching towards Zee with a hiss.

"Prince, stop it!" Sumi shouted.

Prince turned, leaping at the Ekans. He rammed into its side with his horn, smashing it into a boulder to their side. He stepped back, the Ekans eyes closed.

"S-Sumi!" Skyy shouted suddenly, but his voice was strained, and he sounded like he was having trouble breathing.

Sumi turned towards him, gasping. The Gastly had used the distraction with the Ekans to fly over to Skyy and hover over him, pushing its gas down on to him. She shook her head, not wanting to overexert her best friend, but knew she had no other choice. "Zee, use it! Use your Dark Pulse on Gastly!" she shouted.

Zee planted his feet, crouching down low. He suddenly sprang back up, a spiral of deep purple energy suddenly coming from his mouth. It seemed to be a tornado of dark energy, spiraling out of Zee and straight at the Gastly. He'd aimed it so it didn't hit Skyy, but it hit the Gastly dead on, launching it back and to the ground, unconscious. That Trainer had to call his Pokémon as well, along with the Ekans' trainer doing the same to the Ekans, making them step back and retreat from battle. Skyy gasped in the fresh air, a relieved look on his face.

"So that only leaves you…" Sumi said, glaring at their leader. She didn't like it when people went after her friends, and she now considered Skyy a friend.

Zee crouched down slightly, a tired look on his face. That Dark Pulse had worn him out, sapping his energy. He was still too weak to use it properly, but Sumi saw no other choice but to use it to save Skyy.

"Raticate! Hyper Fang!" the leader Grunt shouted suddenly.

The Raticate rushed forward, its teeth starting to radiate a dim glow. It rammed into the side of Prince, knocking the large Rhyhorn onto its side with a roar of pain. He tried to struggle back to his feet, that attack took too much out of him to allow him to.

Skyy finally got to his feet, albeit with difficulty, the Paralysis starting to wear off. He had to lean against a tree to keep from falling over, but he was managing to hold up all right. "We should finish this up… Your Pokémon can't hold out much longer…" he grunted.

Sumi nodded. "I know. Zee, we have to take out this Raticate!" she said. She pulled out her Pokéball, calling her injured Prince back.

"Raticate, take out this little twerp!" the Rocket shouted with a smirk.

Raticate rushed forward, leaping at Zee with the same attack it had used to take out Prince. The little Zorua wasn't able to dodge in time, taking the hit and flying back, right into Sumi's chest. She managed to catch him, but had fallen on her back in the process.

The Rocket grunt came up to Sumi, smirking. "I'll be taking your Zorua now. And the Ranger's also coming with us." He said.

Sumi shook her head as she got back to her feet, holding Zee in her arms. "No! Stay back! I won't let you take my best friend away!" she shouted.

"Piiii!" she heard a sudden cry to her side.

Before anyone could do anything, a sudden blast of flames erupted from the trees. It engulfed both the Raticate and the Rocket, leaving the Raticate on its back, knocked out while the Rocket just stood there, stunned for the moment, his entire body now blackened and charred from the fire before also falling back.

"What was that…?" Skyy asked, the paralysis almost completely worn off.

"I'm not sure! It was just a sudden blast of fire, but where did it come from?" Sumi asked.

"I won't forget this, you little brat!" the Rocket shouted, calling back his Raticate suddenly. He turned on his heels, rushing back into the forest.

"Vul!" the voice that came before the fire said suddenly. A small Vulpix walked up, a smile on its face.

"Did you help us just then?" Sumi asked, kneeling down.

The Vulpix came up to her, rubbing the side of its face up against Sumi's hand affectionately. It nodded, looking pleased with itself.

"I think that's the same Vulpix I captured earlier to help Zee out of that net trap." Skyy said. "It must really like you, Sumi. I think it just came out to help you."

Zee looked down at the Vulpix, leaping out of Sumi's arms and down to sniff it a little bit. The Vulpix looked happy, its tails fluffing up slightly as it crouched down and stretched. It tilted its head slightly, speaking in its Vulpix talk to Zee for a moment.

{I'm sure it'll be okay. Sumi's really nice.} Zee said with his little grin.

Sumi looked confused. "What's it saying?" she asked.

Zee turned towards her, smiling happily. {She's asking me if she can be on your team, Sumi. She likes how you treat your Pokémon and wants to help.} he said.

Sumi held her hand out to the little Vulpix. "A Vulpix could come in handy later…" she said.

"Vulpix is a Fire-Type. She can be useful against Grass and Bug-Types." Skyy explained.

"So you want to join up with us?" Sumi asked.

The Vulpix jumped up happily, coming up over and sniffing at her fingers. She looked up at Sumi, nodding happily with a cute smile. "Vul!" she said happily.

Sumi giggled, pulling a Pokéball out from her belt and holding it out to the little Vulpix. "Only if it's what you want. I don't think either of my Pokémon have the strength to really battle you right now to catch you properly." She said.

The Vulpix smiled happily, pressing the button on the Pokéball with her nose. She was enveloped in the red light, being pulled into the ball. It twitched a couple of times, but quickly settled in her hand.

"Seems that Vulpix really liked you, Sumi. It came back even after I released it from the capture just to be on your team." Skyy said. He smiled. "I think that's proof enough that you're a kind and caring trainer."

Sumi blushed lightly, not used to taking a compliment like that. "Thank you. I really try to be nice to my friends so I don't scare them off." She said.

"And you're doing a great job of it. I can see why Zee likes you so much." He said. He patted her shoulder. "Have you ever considered becoming a Ranger? With an affinity towards Pokémon like you have, you'd be an amazing Ranger."

She shook her head. "Thanks for the offer, but I'd rather finish my quest to become a Pokémon Master. Beat all the gym challenges, and eventually beat the Pokémon League. Maybe when I'm done I'll think about it though?" she asked.

Skyy nodded. "I understand. I was just putting the option out there." He told her.

She smiled, looking down at the Pokéball with her new Vulpix friend in it. "I think… I'll call you Firefox." She said, smiling happily.

{I think she'll be a great addition to our team! I look forward to fighting next to her, though she seems a bit too peppy for me.} Zee said, licking his paw.

"Well now I have 3 Pokémon to help me on my journey. I have better odds of reaching the Pokémon League and beating it!" Sumi said with a large smile. With that, they all headed back on their journey towards Viridian City.

* * *

**AUTHOR'S NOTE:** Just a quick question for my readers... In the manga, some of the Kanto Gym Leaders work in Team Rocket, aside from just Giovanni. Mostly Sabrina, Surge, and Koga I think. Should I do that in my story? Or just leave them good guys that stay in their respective cities/gyms like the anime and the games do?


	7. Chapter 7 - Rivalry

**AUTHOR'S NOTE**: Hey all! Sorry for taking so long to update! Been going through a lot at home IRL (Not to mention just haven't been up to writing recently... Not only have I just not been inspired to do much, but I also have had some MAJOR writer's block...). Just wanting to let you know I'm still alive! And I'm actually going to be going to college soon, and just a funfact about myself, when I'm in school, I normally write and write and write, so I might be putting up more than just this fanfic once that starts! ^^

* * *

"We're finally here!" Sumi said happily. She held Zee in her arms as she and Skyy walked through the gates of the small town of Viridian City. The buildings weren't very big, kind of spaced out, and it looked like it was mostly a residential town, not much in the ways of a market.

"Which, unfortunately, means this is where we part ways." Skyy said.

Sumi looked up at him curiously, then got a saddened look. She'd forgotten that he was only accompanying her until she got to the city. "That's right… I'll miss you, Skyy." She said.

{Me too. You were nice.} Zee said, jumping up onto Sumi's shoulder. He used that to jump onto Skyy's shoulder, nudging his cheek with his nose.

Skyy chuckled, petting Zee with a smile. "Don't worry, you guys. I'm sure we'll see each other again someday. After all, I'm a Ranger. I go where they need me, and with there not being more than a couple of Ranger Bases set up here in Kanto, I'll be everywhere." He explained.

"Then I guess this isn't goodbye, but more of 'we'll see you later'?" Sumi asked.

Zee leapt from Skyy's shoulder to the ground. {Too bad you can't stay with us longer. You know a lot about Pokémon, and you might be able to help Sumi train.} he said.

Skyy shook his head. "You know I'd like to do that, but I have a mission to complete." He said, turning to a large building with a Pokéball sign over the doors. "That's the gym, and I'll be there for a while, looking for information on the missing leader."

"Maybe if you're still there, we'll come say hi to you before we leave town?" Sumi asked.

"Yeah, maybe. But first, you should go bring your Pokémon to the Pokémon Center. Zee and Prince took quite a beating in that battle." Skyy suggested.

Sumi nodded, looking around. The Center wasn't too difficult to spot. It looked like a large, round building that had a replica of the top of a Pokéball as a roof.

"Well, goodbye for now, Sumi. Good luck on your journey! You'll make a great Pokémon Master!" Skyy said, waving as he went on his way towards the gym.

"Thanks!" Sumi called after him before walking towards the Pokémon Center. Zee followed at her side, but he was wobbling slightly. Sumi noticed this, giggling slightly. She knew the little guy was too stubborn to admit that he was very weak from taking that last attack head-on, but if he was going to try and hide his pain like that, he was going to collapse. She just thought it was cute how strong he was trying to be, remembering his concern earlier when he thought he was weak.

She knelt down, wrapping her arms around him and lifting him into the air. {Hey! I'm fine! I can walk on my own!} Zee complained, struggling weakly in her arms.

"Stop it, Zee. I know you're hurt. I don't want you to hurt yourself more by pushing yourself too hard." Sumi said as she walked into the Center.

As soon as she stepped in, she was greeted by a young woman. It was an adult with bright pink hair. Her hair was pulled into a pair of rings behind her head, the ends of which hidden underneath a small, white hat with a red plus on the front. Her bangs were curled, and hung above her deep ocean blue eyes. Her dress was simple and pink, with a white apron over it.

"Hello, miss. Can I help you today?" The woman asked as Sumi walked in. She was standing behind a large desk built into the wall, which led Sumi to believe she was the nurse in charge of the Center.

"Um, yes… My Pokémon got hurt in a fight earlier…" Sumi started, looking down at her exhausted Pokémon.

"Oh my! Well don't you worry. Your Pokémon just need some rest, and they'll be just fine in a few hours." The nurse said. She pressed a small button on the desk, and a pair of large, pink Pokémon carrying an egg in a pouch on their stomachs came out from another room, pushing a stretcher.

"What are those…?" Sumi asked, pulling her Pokédex out.

_Chansey. The Egg Pokémon. A kindly Pokémon that lays highly nutritious eggs and shares them with injured Pokémon or people. It lays several eggs a day, but won't share them with those who have evil in their hearts._

"Don't worry, your Pokémon will be safe in our care, miss. I promise." She said smiling.

"Thanks…" Sumi said with a worried look, laying Zee down onto the stretcher. She pulled Prince's Pokéball from her belt, placing it next to him. As she pulled out Firefox's ball, she just held it for a moment, looking up at the nurse. "Is it all right if I keep this one with me? She hasn't fought at all, and I don't want to be out here alone." She asked her.

The nurse nodded with a polite smile. "Of course. That won't be a problem at all." The nurse said as the two Chansey wheeled the stretcher into a back room. Zee looked up at Sumi with a shy look, nervous about being left alone.

"Don't worry, Zee! I'll stay here while you're resting! I promise, I won't leave you here alone!" Sumi said with a smile, watching Zee. It was reassuring to the young Pokémon, his nervousness being exchanged with his normal confidence.

Sumi pulled Firefox's ball off of her belt, pressing the button to grow it to its usable size. She held the ball in front of her, smiling lightly. With a flash of white light, the small Vulpix was released from the ball, sitting and looking up at her with a cute smile.

"Firefox, can I ask you a favor?" Sumi asked, knowing that Pokémon were normally pretty smart.

Firefox tilted her head, a curious look in her eyes.

Sumi reached into her pocket, pulling out some money. She walked up to the front desk again, up to the nurse. "Um, excuse me, miss? Do you have some paper I can use?" she asked.

The nurse looked up from her papers, looking curious. "Why, yes we do, sweetie. And go ahead and call me Joy." She said with a polite smile. She pulled a piece of paper out of the tray of a nearby printer, holding it out to her.

Sumi took it, uttering a quick 'thank you' to her, before grabbing a pen and starting to write. She wrote down a list of things, then folded the paper up like an envelope. She slipped the money inside the paper, folding it tightly so it wouldn't fall out, then knelt down next to Firefox. "Can I ask you to bring this to the Pokémon Mart we passed on the way here? It was the building with a blue roof. Bring it to the shopkeeper please." She asked.

Firefox nodded, taking the makeshift envelope in her mouth. She turned quickly, running to the doors of the Center and exiting through them.

Sumi walked over to a large, plush couch in the waiting room, turning and sitting on it. She pulled her backpack off, holding it in her arms in front of her. "Well, now there's nothing to do but wait." She mumbled to herself. She glanced up at the small television they had playing in the corner of the room. It was one of her favorite channels, one of the ones that she used to watch at home all of the time. It was about a pair of reporters, who were also Pokémon Trainers. They'd go around, battling tough-looking trainers with Pokémon they'd get from the producer, but they always had their own personal partners as well. They'd go around different areas, challenging worthy-looking trainers as the saw them pass, the beautiful female reporter always using a just as beautiful Dragonair at her side. The strong male cameraman was noted for using his own personally trained, and equally strong, Luxray. The two had only been beaten by a few trainers so far, ones that had been on their journeys a while. Right now, they were over in the Hoenne region, challenging a young boy trainer. He'd defeated the Pokémon the producer had given them, but he was having a problem with their personal Pokémon.

Sumi watched the show, a small smile forming on her face. She closed her eyes, her thoughts drifting of what a battle would be like if she'd been able to fight them. She knew with Zee, Prince, and Firefox at her side, she'd win for sure. She knew she'd have problems with the reporters' personal Pokémon, but she knew that together, they'd be able to prosper in the end.

Before she knew it, she had drifted off to sleep.

Sumi's dream this time was a strange one indeed.

She was in the middle of a storm. She couldn't see anything else, but torrential rains and violent oceans. The waves were cruel and unforgiving, the storm egging them on. If any ships were to try to pass through, they'd be capsized quickly, any Pokémon had to travel under the water.

She was, however, under the water already. Underwater was calmer than above, but she was still being pushed around a little, She was floating in a light pink bubble, floating up towards the surface, towards the angry waves.

As soon as she broke the surface, however, the scenery seemed to change. She could see the rain and waves from under the water, but passing through the surface, she seemed to have passed through a portal or something to another dimension. The ocean was calm, the waves almost nonexistence. The sun was shining, cottony clouds floating through the blue sky.

She heard a high-pitched cry behind her and turned in her small bubble. She was suddenly face-to-face with a pair of large, crystal-blue eyes. The pink, cat-like creature flying in front of her was looking directly at her, its head tilted slightly as it floated in front of her bubble.

It took Sumi a moment to remember, but she did notice something familiar about this strange, new Pokémon. She reached back for her Pokédex, but she gasped. She didn't have it! In fact, her entire backpack seemed to have just vanished into thin air!

"Wait, I remember you! You're that Pokémon from before!" she said, an excited look forming on her face.

The feline Pokémon seemed to smile cutely. "Mew!" it cried out, flying closer to her, almost in response to her reply.

The Pokémon brought its paw up to the bubble, poking it suddenly. With a small '_pop_', the bubble burst.

She fell, falling back towards the water.

She jumped, awaking with a start and uttering a small squeak. She quickly looked around to check her surroundings.

Plush couch underneath her, television in front of her. She was in some sort of a waiting room, and was holding her backpack in her hands.

It took her a moment to come back to reality, remembering that she was still in the Pokémon Center. There was something small and warm on her lap. Looking down, she saw the light, reddish brown fur, and the two large, deep brown eyes looking back up at her. It was Firefox, curled up in her lap. Seeing her awake, it got a happy look, cuddling into her lap. There was a white plastic sack on the floor at Sumi's feet, the bag that she'd brought back with the things on the grocery list.

Sumi smiled, stroking her friend's fur. "Sorry if I scared you. I had a strange dream." She said.

"So it really is your Pokémon. How'd you manage to get a Vulpix already?" a familiar, obnoxious voice came from next to her.

Sumi made a small grunt of surprise, looking to her right, where the voice was coming from. Sure enough, it was exactly who she thought it was. The same obnoxious person she always had to deal with, sitting next to her with his hands resting behind his head.

"What do you want, Blue…?" she asked, rubbing her eye. She was still groggy from sleep, and wasn't sure if she didn't want to deal with his attitude.

He got his usual overconfident smirk. "Is that any way to talk to the future champion?" he asked, giving her a fake hurt look.

"Future champion my butt, Blue. I'm going to be the one to beat the Elite Four and get the title of champion!" she said, a confident look on her face.

"Hah! I'll believe it when I see it." He said with a grin.

Firefox stood on Sumi's lap, growling at him. Seems she sensed that Sumi and he didn't get along, and she didn't appreciate someone treating her trainer like that.

Blue just laughed. "Hey, calm down, Vulpix. It's just a bit of friendly competition." He said, getting to his feet. "A competition that I'm definitely going to win, anyway!" he said with a laugh.

Firefox stopped growling at him with that, but continued to glare at him.

"Well I've got to go. Pewter City's just past the forest, and I plan on getting the Boulder Badge by tomorrow!" he said with a large grin.

"I'll be going and getting it too! The eight gym badges needed to get into the Pokémon League, I will get all of them!" she said, moving Firefox to the seat next to her and standing up.

Blue laughed, grinning. He held out his hand to her. "Then I guess that makes us official rivals! I doubt you'll be better than me, but I invite you to try!" he said.

Sumi grinned. "Rivals. That sounds good. And I will become a Pokémon Master! You can count on it!" she said, taking his hand. They gave each other a friendly handshake, smiling at each other. Even though they weren't really fond of each other, was this some kind of friendship starting to bloom?

{Sumi!}

Zee's voice came out of nowhere before the little body jumped into her.

Sumi stumbled back a bit, but managed to catch him. "Zee?" she asked, then smiled happily. "I'm happy you're okay!" she said with a large smile. She held him in front of her, smiling.

{Yeah, that nurse lady treated me really nice!} Zee said happily, rubbing his face against her cheek, before looking over at Blue. {Wait, what's _he_ doing here?} he asked.

"Don't worry, little guy, I'm leaving once my Pokémon are back. The Center's healing them after our training session." Blue told him.

"Training session? So that's why you're here?" Sumi asked curiously.

"Of course. I'm training my Pokémon to get stronger. Why, what happened to get you here?" Blue asked with a confused look on his face.

{Just training? You've got a long way to go to catch up with Sumi and me!} Zee said with a little snicker.

"What's that supposed to mean, little punk?" Blue asked, getting a bit of an angry look.

{Sumi's already beaten three people at once!} Zee bragged.

"We were attacked by some people who called themselves Team Rocket. They wanted my Zee, but we beat them. With Skyy's help, anyway. And little Firefox helped us out in the end, too!" Sumi said with a small giggle, petting Firefox's head. The little Vulpix got a happy look with the sudden attention.

"Team Rocket? Never heard of them before. Maybe I'll ask Gramps about them?" Blue said, but shrugged.

"Excuse me, Blue?" Joy said, coming up. She was holding a full team of six Pokéballs on a tray in front of her. "Your Pokémon are all healed up and ready to go." She said, but she looked a little unhappy.

"Thanks!" Blue said, reaching for the tray.

Joy, however, pulled it just out of his reach. "The poor things were exhausted! You ought to be ashamed of yourself for pushing them so hard!" she scolded.

Blue actually looked surprised, the spoiled brat probably not used to being yelled at. "I… Um…" he tried to speak, but couldn't form a sentence.

"Now just stop pushing them so hard! Treat your Pokémon with a little respect, got it?" Joy said before holding the tray out to him.

"Y-yes mam…" he muttered, taking the balls off the tray and adding them to the slots on his belt.

Sumi couldn't help but giggle at this. It was rare to see Blue on the defensive or embarrassed like this.

"Oh, and this one is yours, Sumi." Joy said, holding out another Pokéball. Through the transparent red top, Prince could be seen, looking up at her excitedly.

"Thanks!" She said happily, holding Zee in one hand and taking the ball and adding it to her belt, like Blue had done, with the other.

"Zee explained to me what happened. Just try to be a little more careful with your Pokémon during battle, okay?" she asked.

Sumi nodded. "Of course. We're going to do our best to get stronger. But I promise not to overwork them." She said. Zee agreed with a nod.

"Well I'll see you later. Maybe next time, we can gauge how well you've gotten with a battle?" Blue asked, grinning.

Sumi nodded. "We're ready to take you whenever you're ready to battle!" she said with a confident smirk.

{Yeah! We'll kick your butt, too!} Zee said.

"We'll have to see about that, little man." Blue said. He picked up his backpack that he had sitting on the couch next to where Sumi'd been sleeping, slinging it over his shoulder.

{Just make sure you're ready! Because we're not going easy on you!} Zee shouted. Sumi nodded in agreement.

"If you say so. Smell you later!" Blue said as he turned, taking off towards the exit and out the door.


	8. Chapter 8 - Lost

{Sumi, where are we?}

The forest was dark, the trees barely allowing enough sunlight through to light up the dense foliage around them.

"Relax, Zee. I'm sure we'll be able to find our way through soon…" Sumi said, but she wasn't so sure of herself. And Zee could tell.

{Aw, I knew we should have bought that map before we came in here!} Zee said with a small huff. He stopped, stretching for a moment, before rejoining Sumi at her side.

"Just relax. If we keep going straight, I'm sure we'll find our way through the forest. It can't go on forever, right?" Sumi asked, but her attitude couldn't hide her expression. She was as tired as she knew her partner was.

{You know, you could always have Prince just bowl over all the trees to make a path through this stupid place…} Zee suggested, looking up at her.

"Zee, you know I can't do that!" Sumi responded. She sighed.

They'd been wandering through the forest for the last few hours.

Pokémon they'd come across would normally immediately scurry away, all of them being bug Pokémon. A couple of times, however, she did see a flash of yellow in the trees. But she wasn't sure if it was a shaft of sunlight breaking through the leaves for a moment, or if she was catching a glimpse of a Kakuna from a strange angle. But because of the lack of time able to see the Pokémon, she hadn't even been able to log even one more entry into her Pokédex.

{Well I'm tired of this place. I want to go back to Pallet town. I miss my bed, and not having to walk this far…} Zee complained.

Sumi sighed. She didn't want to admit it, but she missed her home as well. She missed waking up in the morning to her mom's cooking. She didn't like being on the road all the time. She knew she was only homesick, and that the journey was one that her mom had taken in the past, which was all that she was holding onto at the moment, the only reason she was able to persevere.

{Hey, can we stop for a bit? I think the sun's down.} Zee said suddenly.

Sumi stopped, looking down at Zee. She hadn't noticed it before, but it was getting darker and darker. The sun was probably sinking below the horizon, but it was just barely bright enough to see. It would be completely dark soon.

Zee stopped walking as well, looking up at her curiously. {I think we should build a campsite or something. You know, like those people in that movie that get lost in the forest?}

Sumi nodded. "Yeah, you're right…} she said. She knelt down, pulling one of the Pokéballs from her belt. She held it out, pressing the button to make it grow to its full size, then dropped it to the ground.

Almost at once, Firefox came from the ball in a blast of white light. She twirled around, happy that she was being called out of her ball.

"Firefox, can you help us start a fire?" she asked.

The small vulpine Pokémon nodded, smiling happily.

"Great! Zee, come on. We'll all need to find some firewood." She said.

{Can't we just light a tree on fire or something? That'll give us plenty of warmth and light…} Zee suggested.

"No, we can't just do that." Sumi said with a small giggle.

A few minutes later, they had a fire going. Sumi had asked for Prince's help as well, who gathered the rocks to place around their small fire pit so the fire wouldn't spread, while Firefox used her Ember to light it. She'd taken some of the food she'd had Firefox buy for her, some Pokémon food for them and some berry jam and bread for herself, making some sandwiches for her while her Pokémon chowed down on their own meals. The whole time, however, Zee kept looking off into the forest nervously.

"You okay?" Sumi finally asked after watching her best friend look out into the darkness once more.

Zee jumped slightly, but looked back at her. {I think someone's watching us…} he said nervously, looking back out between the trees.

"It's probably some bug Pokémon. Just relax. Bug Pokémon don't like fire, so they'll definitely stay away from our camp fire." Sumi said, reaching down and petting Zee, stroking the fur on her back softly.

{Maybe… I hope so…} Zee said nervously.

Sumi smiled, looking into the fire for a while. The dancing flames were almost hypnotic, and it wasn't until she felt a paw on her leg that she was brought back to reality.

She looked down, noticing Firefox next to her. Her small paw was resting on her leg, and she was looking up at her in worry.

Sumi looked back into the fire for a moment, realizing that she must have been zoning out. She was tired, and she knew it. She just didn't realize how tired she was until now.

"Sorry if I worried you. I guess it's time for bed, huh?" she asked, smiling.

Firefox smiled and nodded, taking her paw off of Sumi's leg. She backed up, watching her trainer curiously.

Sumi grabbed her backpack, digging inside. She pulled out one of the items she had Firefox buy for her before. It was a thin length of cloth, a kind of bedroll. She knew she'd be rather uncomfortable without her blanket, but this was supposed to be something that would cushion the ground a little, something to provide her at least a little bit of comfort.

She laid the bedroll down on the ground, laying down on top of it once she pulled the folds out of it. "Good night everyone." She said, smiling.

{Night, Sumi!} Zee said with a smile, climbing up onto Sumi's chest and curling up, just like what he'd do when she'd sleep at home.

Firefox came up next to her, curling up beside her. The heat coming from her little body was soothing, though Sumi had to admit she wished she was a little bigger so the heat could spread to her whole body.

Prince stayed a bit away, laying down by the fire. He knew because of his rock-hard skin, he'd be more of a burden than comfort. He made a small noise, a mix of a sigh and a grunt, as he settled in, relaxing next to the fire.

When morning came, Sumi was sleeping in, just like she would at home. She was laying on her back, holding onto Zee. Firefox was still laying curled up at her side, and Prince had shifted so he was a bit farther away from the intense heat of the fire, but he was still resting peacefully. At least, until a small noise woke him up.

"Pii?"

He lifted his head, looking curious. A small, yellow mouse-type Pokémon with black marks around its collar and ears, as well as a black, small tail was standing by Sumi's bag, looking curious itself. It was sniffing her bag.

Prince got to his feet, letting out a low growl.

The Pokémon turned towards him, getting a scared look. It shook its little head, rubbing its stomach with a meek smile.

Prince just answered this with a loud roar, causing it to jump away from him with a scared look. In response, Prince trotted over, grabbing the strap of Sumi's bag in his mouth, bringing it over and setting it next to her.

Sumi jolted up suddenly, being dragged out of her sleep by this. Firefox looked up at her in concern, Zee making a startled squeak as he tumbled off of her stomach and into her lap, her having let go of her hug as she sat up. She watched Prince bring her bag to her, still half asleep.

"Prince, what's going on?" Sumi asked, rubbing her eyes.

"Pi?" the Pokémon asked, stepping towards her cautiously. This, however, was met by Prince suddenly jumping in front of her, growling at it.

"Whoa, Prince, calm down!" Sumi said, laying her hand on the Rhyhorn's side. She dug into the pocket of her backpack, pulling her Pokédex out with a curious look. "What is that?" she asked. She held her Pokédex up, aiming it at the small Pokémon.

_Pichu. The Tiny Mouse Pokémon. Despite its small size, it can zap even adult humans. However, if it does so, it also surprises itself. It is not yet skilled at storing electricity. It may send out a jolt if amused or startled._

"A thunder-type then? This little guy would make a great addition to our team!" Sumi said excitedly.

Before she could do anything, however, Prince rushed forward. He roared, rushing straight at the little Pichu!

"Pii!" the Pichu cried, barely leaping out of the way in time.

"Prince! Stop it! What are you doing?" Sumi shouted in a worried tone.

{He's saying he found that Pichu sniffing through your bag. He thinks he's defending what's yours!} Zee explained, coming up to Sumi's side.

"Well, stop it, Prince! I want to catch that!" Sumi said, stomping on the ground angrily.

Prince turned and looked at her, a confused look on his face. He looked like he didn't understand why she would tell him to stop an attack.

She looked back at the Pichu, but all she was able to see was its tail disappearing into the trees. She groaned in frustration, turning towards Prince. "You let it get away!" she said, a little angry.

Prince took a step back with an apologetic look.

{He's getting scared now. Sumi, he looks to you as the new leader of his small herd, and he's sorry.} Zee said, putting his paw on her leg.

Sumi looked down at her friend, then looked up at Prince with a confused look. "I'm your herd leader?" she asked, almost taken by surprise.

Prince met her question with a small nod, looking up at her like a child in trouble would look up at an angry mother.

Sumi came up to Prince, wrapping her arms around his neck in a hug. "I'm sorry for yelling at you… I guess I still have a lot to learn about being a trainer, don't I?" she asked, smiling at him. "The Pichu will show up again, I'm sure." She smiled.

A few minutes later, they were all packed up, heading back on the road to their adventure. The forest around them had gotten a little brighter, the trees above them getting just a little thinner. They were getting closer to the edge of the forest, closer to Pewter City, and closer to their next gym battle. Probably even closer to Blue. Firefox and Prince had been returned to their Pokéballs, and Zee was sticking out of the back of Sumi's backpack, his head sitting on her shoulder as he watched them walk down the road ahead.

{Sumi, when are we going to get there?} Zee asked.

"Soon. I promise." Sumi said.

{That's what you said a while ago!} Zee complained with a small, audible sigh.

"Just relax. Take a nap if you're bored." Sumi said.

There was a sudden shudder from a nearby bush. The movement and sudden noise made Sumi jump in surprise.

Zee jumped off of Sumi's shoulder, a grin forming on his face. {I wanna start my training now!} He said with a confident look.

"I guess… Let's see what's in there first, though!" Sumi said, picking up a small rock. She threw it into the bush making the noise, raising her eyebrows in surprise when a small, green bug crawled out of it. It had a yellow circle on all of its body segments, and a red crest on its forehead that formed into its antennae.

Sumi took out her Pokédex, aiming it at the bug.

_Caterpie. The Worm Pokémon. Its feet have suction cups designed to stick to any surface. It tenaciously climbs trees to forage. It releases a stench from its red antenna to repel enemies. It grows by molting repeatedly._

{Can I squash this bug, Sumi?} Zee asked, crouching down in a battle-ready position.

Sumi nodded. "Yeah. I guess the training starts here!" Sumi said with a grin. She pointed at the Caterpie. "Go Zee! Use your Scratch!" she said.

Zee rushed forward with a grin, leaping up into the air. He came down upon the Caterpie, scratching it with its sharp claws.

The Caterpie fell back, taken by surprise from the attack. It quickly regained its footing, however, quickly rushing forward to hit Zee with a tackle.

"Zee! Out of the way!" Sumi shouted.

Zee agreed, leaping to the side. The Caterpie ran right past him, but stopped and turned. From its circular mouth in front of its body, it shot a spray of some strange, white fluid at Zee, its String Shot.

Zee grunted in frustration. {Oh, come on, now I've got to have a bath to get this gunk out of my beautiful fur!} he said, growling at the Caterpie. He tried to step back, to get away from the bug, but the String Shot had made his paws all sticky, so he was moving slower than normal as his paws stuck to the ground.

Caterpie rushed forward again, using Tackle on Zee once more. Unable to get away in time, Zee took the hit, quickly falling to the side with a grunt of pain.

"Zee, are you okay?!" Sumi asked, looking worried.

{I'm fine! I'm not out of this yet!} Zee said, smirking a bit. He growled at the Caterpie, running at it again. His feet were sticky, but not sticky enough to stop him from using Scratch again.

This time as it connected, the Caterpie flew backwards into a tree, smacking against it. It fell to the ground, unconscious. The sticky threads it had used to slow Zee down were already starting to fade.

Sumi picked her friend up, quickly holding him in a hug. "You did it, Zee!" she said happily.

{Yeah, I did, didn't I?} Zee asked with a large grin. He rubbed his cheek against hers happily. {I feel like I can take this whole forest on!} he said with a huge grin.

Sumi giggled a bit, trying to pull some of the remaining String Shot residue out of Zee's fur. "Yes you can! I believe in you!" she said with a smile. "We'll have those badges in no time!"


	9. Chapter 9 - Pewter City

It was about midday when Sumi and Zee finally reached the edge of the forest. They'd been fighting Caterpie and Weedle day, and the occasional Wurmple and Burmy they'd wandered across. Zee even got to fight a Ledyba. They'd stopped to take a few short rests, of course, and while Zee was resting she'd test the skills of both Prince and Firefox. She had a pretty strong team already. She'd also managed to get a few Pokédex entries while she was in the forest, from the different Pokémon she'd run across:

_Burmy. The Bagworm Pokémon. It covers itself with a cloak to shelter from the cold. When it's hot, its cloak is thinner. Even if it is born where there are no cocooning materials, it somehow always ends up with a cloak._

_Weedle. The Hairy Bug Pokémon. A common sight in forests and grassy areas. Has a poison stinger on its head that may be used if you step on it._

_Kakuna. The Cocoon Pokémon. The evolved form of Weedle. Kakuna remains virtually immobile as it clings to a tree. However, on the inside, it is extremely busy as it prepares for its coming evolution. This is evident from how hot the shell becomes to the touch._

_Metapod.. The Cocoon Pokémon. The evolved form of Caterpie. The shell covering this Pokémon's body is as hard as an iron slab. Metapod does not move very much. It stays still because it is preparing its soft innards for evolution inside the hard shell._

_Joltik. The Attaching Pokémon. They attach themselves to large-bodied Pokémon and absorb static electricity, which they store in an electric pouch._

_Venonat. The Insect Pokémon. Its coat of thin, stiff hair that covers its entire body is said to have evolved for protection. Its large eyes never fail to spot even miniscule prey._

_Sewaddle. The Sewing Pokémon. This Pokémon makes clothes for itself. It chews up leaves and sews them with sticky thread extruded from its mouth._

Sumi shut her Pokédex, smiling happily. She glanced over her shoulder, at the little Zorua that was hitching a ride again, the top half of his body sticking out of her backpack and resting on her shoulder again. He had some scuff marks on him, as well as some leaves and small twigs sticking out of his fur, but he was more or less all right. He had a large smile on his little face as well, showing that he was doing just fine.

"I'm so happy we're finally out of that forest!" Sumi said with a relieved and excited look.

{Yeah, me too! I don't like being lost like we were.} Zee said, closing his eyes with a small nod.

"You did really great in your training, too! You were beating all kinds of Bug Pokémon in the forest!" Sumi said with a giggle, reaching over her shoulder and petting her friend's head a bit.

Zee rubbed his head against Sumi's palm. "Yeah, I was pretty great, wasn't I?" Zee asked with a proud grin.

Sumi walked up to the large building with the red roof, the one that was the shape of a giant Pokéball. The Pokémon Centers in each town all pretty much looked the same, probably shaped how they were just so trainers could spot them easily. She entered through the doors, which automatically opened up for her as she approached, and walked immediately up to the counter.

Zee jumped from her bag, climbing up onto her shoulder, and then over her to jump down onto the counter in front of her.

Almost as if she were coming in reaction to her showing up, the nurse came out from the back to greet her. There was something familiar about her, though…

"Hello, and welcome to the Pewter City Pokémon Center. Can I help you?" the nurse asked.

{Wait a sec! You were in Viridian City!} Zee shouted suddenly, pointing at the pink-haired nurse with his front paw.

Sumi gasped. Zee was right! "You're Nurse Joy, aren't you? How'd you get here so fast?" Sumi asked, noticing that it was indeed the exact same girl that she met in Viridian City to get help after the Rocket attack.

"Oh, you must be thinking about my sister! The Joy in Viridian City is my older Sister!" she said with a large smile, an underlying hint traced in her face that kind of showed that she got that question asked quite a lot.

{You even smell the same!} Zee said, coming up and sniffing her hand.

Joy giggled lightly. "I have to admit that's not a detail people usually tell me!" she said, taking a tray out from under the counter and placing it on the surface. "Now, if you'll please place your Pokéballs here, we'll do all we can to get your Pokémon back to full health, and back to being fighting fit!" she said, smiling at Sumi.

Sumi nodded, remembering the same instructions the last time she was at a Center. Of course, the last time she got chastised about the weakened condition Zee was in after the battle with the Rockets. She was happy not to be yelled at this time.

She pulled the Pokéballs off of the slots on her belt, reaching forward and setting them onto the tray. Zee jumped behind the counter, looking up at Sumi with a small smile, worried about being somewhere without her, but knowing she'd be okay.

"They'll be all healed up soon." Nurse Joy told her with a smile. "They just need some rest, and they'll be good as new!"

"Thanks! I guess I'll go have a look around town while I'm waiting then." Sumi said with a polite smile.

"I'm sure they'll be back at 100% by the time you get back." Joy told her, bringing the tray into the room behind the counter. Zee followed behind Joy.

Sumi walked out of the center, finally able to have a good look at the town. It was bigger than her Pallet town, but not that much bigger. The houses were actually smaller, but there were quite a few more of them. There was the center behind her, and then a blue-roofed Pokémart just down the street. What interested her the most, though, was a large building at the end of the street, one that had a pair of statues in front of a canine-like Pokémon, one she hadn't seen before. It seemed to be standing guard of the building. The sign under it read "Pewter City Museum of Science".

She walked up to the museum's entrance, going in with a curious look. It was a nice place, different fossils and artifacts behind glass cases.

"Excuse me, miss. But it costs 50 Pokédollars for a child's ticket if you'd like to view the exhibits." The woman at the front desk said, just to her left.

"Oh, sorry! I'm not from here." Sumi admitted, pulling out some of her money and bringing it over to her.

The receptionist took the money from her, putting it into the register before handing her a small ticket that featured the same Pokémon that was on the statue outside. "Oh, you're the second one today. There's another one that's already on our second floor. You two from the same town?" she asked.

Sumi took the ticket, looking curious. "I'm not sure. Maybe?" she said, now more curious in whoever she was talking about than the artifacts and exhibits around her.

"Well, it is about the time for those new trainers to start the gym battles I guess. Brock mentioned something about an increase in challengers at his gym." The receptionist told her.

"Brock? That's the gym leader here, right?" Sumi asked.

The receptionist nodded. "Yes. He's also the one who helped excavate a lot of the fossils you see on this first floor." She said.

Sumi nodded with a small smile. "I'll keep that in mind. Thanks!" she said, turning to go to the second floor. The receptionist nodded behind her, going back to the paperwork she'd been doing before Sumi had shown up.

The first thing Sumi went to was one of the large skeletons standing up in the middle of the large viewing area. There were four of these skeletons, all of them the fossils of Pokémon that had died out long ago.

"I wonder if this'll work on dead Pokémon as well?" Sumi asked, pulling her Pokédex out. She stepped in front of one of the skeletons, aiming the Pokédex up at it.

It was large, about the size of a human, if not a little bigger. It stood on its hind legs, balancing itself up on its tail. The skull of it seemed incredibly thick, having spikes protruding from the back and a couple from the front.

The Pokédex flashed to life, but seemed to have some trouble. It took a moment before finally giving her its report, probably having problems processing from the little it had to go with.

_Rampardos. The Head Butt Pokémon. The evolved form of Cranidos. If two were to smash their heads together, their foot-thick skulls would keep them from fainting._

"A Rampardos… That looks powerful…" she said, turn turned to the second one. This one was similar, but the tail was longer, and the skill didn't look as thick. There were a couple of spikes protruding from the tail, and the arms also looked more scythe-like than the one of Rampardos. She held the Pokédex up to that one as well.

_Armaldo. The Plate Pokémon. The evolved form of Anorith. Armaldo's tough armor makes all attacks bounce off. This Pokémon's two enormous claws can be freely extended or contracted. They have the power to punch right through a steel slab._

"Armaldo. It looks really strong!" she said.

She brought her Pokédex over to the third. This one seemed less like a dinosaur, more like a bug. It had long, thin legs, and this one's arms literally were scythes. Its skull jutted out behind its head a little.

_Kabutops. The Shellfish Pokémon. The evolved form of Kabuto. Kabutops once swam underwater to hunt for prey. It was apparently evolving from being a water dweller to living on land as evident from changes in its gills and legs._

"So this Kabutops was in the middle of evolving when it went extinct? How sad…" Sumi said to herself.

As she turned to the last one, she gasped slightly. This one was different to the others, probably taking on a different evolutionary path. It still stood on two legs, but its tail was longer, and formed into a spade at the end. Its arms had strange joints on them, almost like the limbs were meant to be wings. The thin bones on them made this theory even more logical. It also had a large jaw, much larger than the others'.

_Aerodactyl The Fossil Pokémon. A vicious Pokémon from the distant past, it appears to have flown by spreading its wings and gliding. Its teeth are like saw blades._

"I'd hate to meet one of those things face to face…" she muttered to herself.

"Yeah, they were some of the more terrifying Pokémon back in the past. Some of the best hunters, according to the history books." A familiar voice said from behind her.

She turned suddenly, recognizing that voice almost immediately. "Skyy!" she said happily, jumping forward and hugging him.

He laughed, placing his hand on her back. "It's good to see you too. I'm glad to see you made it through the forest safely." He said with a large smile.

"How'd you make it here so fast? We went through that forest as fast as we could, and it still took us a while!" she asked, stepping back out of the hug.

He chuckled, putting his hands in his pockets. "I've got my ways. Mostly my partner. It helps having a flying Pokémon as a partner." He said with a smile.

"Yeah, I could see how that's convenient. I need to get a flying Pokémon soon. It'll help when I need to get somewhere fast." She said, looking down in thought.

"Well it was good seeing you again, but I'm actually on my way out." Skyy said.

"Aww, that's too bad! You can't even stay to watch my gym battle with Brock?" Sumi asked, giving him a pleading look.

"No, sorry. But I'm sure you're going to do great! You're a great trainer, Sumi. And I know you can give me all the details when we see each other again." He said, putting his hand on her shoulder.

"That's too bad… Well, I'll see you again soon hopefully!" she said with a grin.

"Yeah. Good luck with Brock! When I'm done with my mission, or when I'm on a break, I'll look you up and come visit you!" Skyy said happily, waving to her on his way out the door.

"Good luck on your mission!" Sumi called back. She looked at the stairs. There was time to go look at the exhibit upstairs before she went to go back to go pick up her Pokémon. The sign said "Space Exhibit" above the staircase, and she was curious.

With a smile brought on by the good mood of seeing her friend again, she headed up the stairs.

* * *

AUTHOR'S NOTE: If this seems like filler, it kinda was. I'll admit that right now. I'm suffering from Writer's Block again, and I just kind of wanted an excuse to bring Skyy back in! But I have some ideas that are coming to me slowly! The next chapter is when she finally gets to battle her first official gym match, so it might be a little bit longer than the other chapters! I don't want to split it up into two parts or anything. I hate cliffhangers from finishing one chapter, so I don't want my readers to suffer through them either. Well, maybe, but not with gym battles! So anyway, hope you like this chapter!


	10. Chapter 10 - VS Brock Pt 1

Sumi walked up to the large gym, the roof looking like it was made of rough stone. She stood in front of the doors, looking up curiously.

{So this is the Pewter City Pokémon Gym? It's not as big as I thought it would be.} Zee said, sitting down at Sumi's side. From the Zorua's expression, he wasn't too impressed.

"Zee, be nice. It's big enough for the Gym Leader. It probably looks a lot bigger on the inside, anyway." Sumi said. She looked at a small plaque next to the doors.

Zee hopped up onto her shoulder, looking at the plaque next to the doors. {The Rock-Solid Pokémon Trainer.} he read out loud. {So he uses rock-type Pokémon? I don't think I've even seen one in person before, but isn't that going to be kind of difficult with the team you've got?} he asked.

Sumi looked down at her belt, at the Pokéballs that held her fire-type Firefox, and her ground and rock-type Prince. Definitely not a type advantage there, but the only real disadvantage was against her Fire-type.

"Get ready you guy. I'm going to beat Brock, and you guys are going to help me." She said, smiling down at her Pokémon.

{Just be careful. Our only other trainer battle until now was just against those stupid Rocket people. We're not exactly a shining example of experience.} Zee said, starting to look more nervous than anything.

"Don't worry, Zee. Everything will be fine, I promise." Sumi said, walking up to the door.

{You say that now, but you won't be the one being crushed by rocks…} Zee complained, mumbling to himself as he followed her.

Sumi put both hands on the doors, pushing as hard as she could. She assumed it was a push, mostly because there were no handles to make it a pull. She pushed, grunting with the effort, but they weren't opening.

Seeing she was having no luck, Zee stepped forward, putting his front paws on the doors and pushing them himself.

"They must be locked!" Sumi complained.

{No! I can feel them moving a little! We just need to push harder!} Zee said loudly, redoubling his own efforts.

Sumi pushed even harder, trying her best to shove the doors open.

With a small _pop_, they finally came loose. Faster than Sumi'd expected, actually.

She fell down face first into the dirt with a small cry of surprise. Zee had managed to jump out of the way, looking surprised as he watched the doors swing open and Sumi fall flat on her face.

{You okay?} Zee asked with a small snicker, an amused look on his face as he walked up, pawing at her shoulder lightly.

Sumi picked herself up out of the dirt, dusting herself off. "Yeah, I'm fine. Thanks for asking, Zee." She said. She looked up at the doors. "But why did it take so long for the doors to open They look heavy, but they opened rather quickly…" she said, looking confused.

"Because, that was kind of a test. A test that I'm happy to say that you've passed." A deep voice called from inside the gym.

Sumi gasped, kind of taken by surprise at that. She smiled, steadying herself on her feet and walked inside. "What kind of test?" she asked the disembodied voice.

"I was using one of my Pokémon to hold the doors closed. I wanted to see how you'd deal with opening them. You two work together pretty well." The voice said.

Sumi stepped farther in, breathing in a light gasp of surprise as she heard the doors close behind her.

The gym looked larger on the inside than it did from the outside. There was a large stadium-like area set up in the middle, the bottom covered in dirt with various-sized boulders set around it. The outside as rimmed in boulders as well, with a large platform on either end. The lights were kind of dimmed, but had more than enough light to see everything clearly.

On the platform opposite the doors, a man sat cross-legged on a mat on the floor. He had short, messy brown hair, going well with his tanned skin. His eyes were squinted, almost shut, and he wore a stern expression on his face. His clothes consisted of an orange V-neck shirt over a black undershirt, and some pale green cargo pants with the end of the black belt hanging down a bit loose in the front. A pair of light brown shoes completed the ensemble.

"Are you the Gym Leader, Brock, that I heard ran the gym here in Pewter City?" she asked as she came inside, Zee at her heels.

"I am. And you're my newest challenger I'm assuming?" Brock asked her, not moving from his spot.

"Yes!" Sumi said excitedly, climbing the small staircase onto the raised platform opposite him. "I am Sumi from Pallet Town! Gym Leader Brock? I challenge you to a trainer battle!" she said, pointing at him dramatically.

A small smirk spread across his face as he finally moved, getting to his feet. "It's been a long time since I've had a good battle. I'm hoping you don't disappoint me." He said, the grin spreading.

"I won't! I've been waiting for this battle since I left Pallet!" Sumi shouted, getting a confident smile on her face.

Brock's expression turned to one of amusement as he noticed the small Pokémon at her side. "Is that your Pokémon? I've never seen anything like that before. Nobody's ever sent such a small Pokémon after me!" he said with a smirk.

"Are we going to start this battle? Or are we going to just sit here and talk?" Sumi asked.

"I was waiting for you to say that. I'll let you choose three Pokémon. If you're able to defeat my two, then I'll give you what you're after here." Brock said, holding up a small item in his hand. It was about an inch wide, looking like a grey jewel. It was the boulder badge, rumored to only be given out to those trainers that Brock deemed worthy enough.

"All right, then for my first Pokémon, I'll call out Prince!" Sumi said. She pulled her ball off of her belt, pressing the button in the middle to grow it to the proper size. She tossed it up into the air, watching it open and send out her Rhyhorn into the arena. He stomped the ground, roaring proudly.

"A rock-type for your first choice? You're not such a smart trainer, are you?" he asked, grinning. He pulled out his own Pokéball, tossing it into the air. In the flash of white light, what looked like a ball-shaped rock with a face, and a pair of large arms coming out of each side, appeared.

"What's that one?" Sumi asked, pulling out her Pokédex. She aimed it at the strange rock-shaped Pokémon, pressing the button to scan it.

_Geodude. The Rock Pokémon. Found in fields and mountains. Mistaking them for boulders, people often step or trip on them._

"A Geodude. That one doesn't look so tough. You can do it, Prince!" Sumi shouted with a large smile.

"You'll regret underestimating my Geodude!" Brock shouted, pointing. "Go! Pound that Rhyhorn into the ground!" he ordered.

The Geodude flew towards Prince, levitating from an unknown force. As it got close, it swung its fists out, one of them connecting with the side of Prince's face!

Prince stumbled to the side, roaring angrily. He quickly moved forward, bashing his head into the Geodude.

"Prince! Hold on! I didn't say to attack yet!" Sumi said, starting to wonder if it was a good idea to send out the quick-to-the-trigger Prince.

The Geodude took the attack, but moved with it. The attack sent it flying, but that was just what it wanted, gaining some distance on the angry Pokémon to await further orders from Brock.

Brock smirked. "Your Rhyhorn doesn't seem to be very well-trained. It's attacking before you even give it orders?" he asked.

Sumi's face reddened in embarrassment. "Prince, please listen to me this time! We can only win if we work together as Pokémon and Trainer!" Sumi shouted. She knew she sounded confident, but that was actually a line she'd heard on the Pokémon Reporter program she loved so much. She'd been wanting to use that line for a long time.

Prince looked over at her, a guilty look one his face. He really was trying hard, but he was having some issues working together with someone else. Sumi could see that.

"This'll end quickly. Geodude, get him." Brock ordered.

Geodude nodded happily, rushing at Prince. It pulled its fist back on the way, bringing it forward suddenly in a punch.

Prince didn't have time to dodge it. He tried moving to the side, but all that ended up doing was moving the force of the hit from his head to his body. The force of the punch hit him with all of the Geodude's weight behind it, sending the poor Rhyhorn flying fast. He flew a few feet, letting out a roar of pain as he hit one of the boulders, his large body shattering it.

"Prince!" Sumi shouted, a worried expression on her face. She pulled her Pokéball out. "Return!" she said, the red beam of the ball flying out and hitting Prince. It enveloped the Rhyhorn in red light before pulling it back into his ball.

"You sure you're ready to take me on, little girl? You look like you still have a lot of training to do." Brock said, the smirk back on his face.

"I'm not out of the game yet! Firefox, show them how much our training's paid off!" Sumi shouted, tossing Firefox's ball up into the air.

{Firefox is really strong! You'll be able to beat him easily!} Zee said with a large grin.

"Again, you choose a Pokémon that has a definite type disadvantage? Geodude, make short work of that Vulpix." He said, his expression now unamused.

"Firefox! Make sure to dodge his Geodude's moves!" she said as soon as her Pokémon formed form the white light.

Firefox pawed at the ground a little, crouching down to show she was ready for battle.

"You know what? You can make the first move. Just to let you have a small advantage. Though I'm pretty sure it still won't be enough." Brock taunted across the stadium.

"Thanks! Firefox, go! Flamethrower!" Sumi shouted.

Firefox rushed towards the Geodude suddenly, leaping up into the air. With a loud cry, she breathed a huge blast of flame at it, landing back onto her feet at the end of the attack.

The Geodude seemed to just brush off the attack, the stone blackened from the soot, which the Geodude quickly shook off. It was trying to be strong, to pass it off as if the attack didn't do any damage to him, but it was obvious that just withstanding it was actually difficult for the Pokémon.

"Fire attacks won't work too well against rocks. Sumi was it? I don't think you'll be winning the gym badge today." Brock said. He pointed at her Vulpix. "Geodude, go take care of it. End this match quickly." He ordered.

Geodude bobbed up and down, its own version of a nod, and then rushed at Vulpix. It swung its fists, same as it had done with Prince. But unlike the large, bulky Rhyhorn, Firefox was small and lithe. It would take more than that to hit her.

{Wow, she's actually not too bad at dodging those attacks!} Zee said suddenly, an impressed look on his face.

She ducked and dodged gracefully under the attack, dodging each punch like she'd been training for it for years. Not even her tails were nicked by the fists.

Her tails actually seemed to have a silvery gleam to them. Sumi looked at it, really confused. She pulled out her Pokédex, pressing some of the buttons on it to try and get into Vulpix' entry. The little light on the top blinked a few times, obviously picking up the attack already, registering one of the Pokémon attacks.

_Iron Tail. A steel-type move. Vulpix can be tutored to learn this attack. It gives it an advantage against Pokémon that it is week against._

"Tutored…?" Sumi wondered aloud. She looked up, remembering that she was in a battle. Her Pokémon was getting ready to use Iron Tail! That would be able to get past whatever rock-types Brock called out against her. "Firefox! Use Iron Tail!" she shouted.

Firefox nodded quickly, leaping up above the Geodude. Her tails glowed a bright silver suddenly, their texture seeming to shift from soft fur to hard steel. She spun in the air as she got close, slamming the glowing tails into the Geodude.

It flew across the stadium, smashing through a couple of boulders on the way. It came to a rest at Brock's feet, looking hurt and dizzy as it rolled to a stop. It no longer had the energy to fight!

"Iron Tail?" Brock asked, a shocked look on his face. "How did you manage to teach your Vulpix Iron Tail if you're just from Pallet Town?!" he asked, stunned that his Geodude was defeated.

Sumi put her hand behind her head. "To be honest, until now, I didn't even know that she could do that!" She admitted.

"Geodude, return." Brock said, calling it back into its Pokéball. "I have to say, you've impressed me. You may just win this battle yet." He said. He reached back to his belt, pulling out the second Pokéball, his only remaining Pokémon. "But that was just the warm-up. Now it's time to see if you've got what it takes to really fight me!" he called, tossing the ball. "Go, Onix!"

What came out of the ball was truly a sight to behold. It was a huge, grey snake, each segment of it a large boulder. It was gigantic, almost reaching up to the ceiling! Its head had a large bump at the back, almost like a large spike, though it was kind of dulled at the end.

"That thing is huge!" Sumi said with a shocked expression. She aimed her Pokédex up at it.

_Onix. The Rock Snake Pokémon. Its large body is over 26 feet long. Despite its size, it can squirm its way through the ground at 50 mph._

"You were somehow able to beat my Geodude, but I doubt you'll be able to defeat my heavy hitter." Brock said with a smirk. He grinned. "Go, Onix. Crush that little Vulpix." He said in a confident voice.

Onix loomed over Firefox, looking menacing.

"You can do it, Firefox! Come on!" Sumi shouted.

Firefox leapt at the Onix, ready to fight. Sumi knew it would be tough, but she just had to beat it!


	11. Chapter 11 - VS Brock Pt 2

**AUTHOR'S NOTE**: Holy cow, guys! I'm sorry for taking so long for this to be posted! I meant to post it on September 27th, which was my birthday, actually, but life has been happening too much! I started college, and I've been too busy to really write this! -cries- I'm so sorry for slacking!  
Good news, though, is that I've got plenty of ideas now! I've also got Pokemon Y, and I've been playing the crap out of that, and I may be putting the gen 6 Pokemon in as new discoveries eventually (No Mega Evolution yet, though.). So expect more chapters sooner than when I posted this one!

* * *

"Firefox! Use your Iron tail again!" Sumi shouted.

"That attack may have gotten my Geodude, but not Onix! Tackle it!" Brock ordered.

Firefox leapt up at Onix, her tails glowing silver once more. She leapt in just a way that her front paws would launch her into a backflip, planning on gracefully hitting the giant rock serpent.

Onix, however, had different plans. It moved to the side, getting at a better angle to crouch down and slam its head forward. Due to its moving, the Iron Tail missed it completely before it lurched forward, hitting Firefox dead on!

The little Vulpix went flying across the stadium, letting out a cry of surprise and pain, but used her tails as leverage to flip herself in the air and skid to a landing on her feet.

"Pretty impressive. Your Vulpix must be tough to handle a direct hit from my Onix." Brock said, a small smirk forming. "Onix, use Wrap. We'll finish this quickly." He said.

Onix quickly slithered across the ground, moving to slide its body in a circle around Firefox to constrict around her.

But Sumi wasn't about to let that happen. She knew if Onix got her in the Wrap, Firefox would be finished! "Firefox! Dodge it! Quick!" Sumi shouted, but it was too later.

Onix wrapped around the Vulpix, lifting its small body off the ground in its rocky coils. Vulpix cried out as it was squeezed, and Sumi could see her struggling against tight hold, but she wasn't nearly as strong as Brock's Onix.

{Sumi… I really don't think I want to fight this thing…} Zee said suddenly, stepping backwards and hiding himself behind Sumi's legs. He did peek out, however, watching the battle from his hiding place.

Sumi couldn't look down at him now. She had to think of something to get Firefox out of this situation. She didn't want to lose her first Gym Battle, especially after all the training they'd done! But there wasn't anything she could think of that would even work against the Onix, much less free her friend from its clutches.

She couldn't use her Iron Tail in this position. From what Sumi'd seen of the attack, her tails needed to be mobile for her to move and hit the opponent with them. She was out of luck with the one move that she knew would work against the Onix.

Firefox let out a jet of flames, using Flamethrower out of fear, hitting the Onix dead-on in the face with the attack. Onix just looked a little confused, as if it was wondering why the small thing it was wrapped around was still fighting back. All the attack caused was the Onix to tighten its coils even more, squeezing the little Vulpix. If this kept up, she'd be crushed!

Sumi dropped her head. She didn't like it, but Firefox had been defeated. There was no way she could get out of that hold, and she'd be crushed to death if it continued any longer! She held up the Pokéball she'd caught her in, looking nervous. "Firefox, Return!" she said. The Vulpix was pulled into the ball in a small beam of red light, safe from the Onix's clutches.

{Sumi, I don't think we can beat him… Not unless we have a Water-type or something on our team…} He said, leaning up against her legs a little.

"Your Vulpix put up a good fight. I'm impressed, I'll admit. But a Fire-type Pokémon is in no way a match for a Rock-type Pokémon." Brock said with a smirk. He folded his arms in front of him. "And it seems like your other Pokémon doesn't want to battle my Onix. So I guess that means its fear and cowardice has cost you this match." Brock said.

{Hey! I'm no coward! I'm just smart enough not to want to fight something like that!} Zee said, getting a bit offended by Brock's comment.

"There's a difference between cowardice and intelligence. What you've got is pure cowardice." Brock said, but there was something about his smile. Something that made him seem more calculating than malicious.

{No it's not! I'm brave!} Zee said angrily, getting his confidence back. Before Sumi could say anything, Zee rushed forward, running onto the field. {I'll show you who's a coward!} he said.

"Zee are you sure about this?" Sumi asked, looking worried. She didn't want her best and longest friend to get hurt.

{I've never been more sure about anything!} Zee said, crouching down across from Brock's Onix, ready to pounce.

Brock's expression softened. "That's good. I was afraid your panic over the Vulpix' defeat was going to keep you from fighting. It wouldn't be good for your trainer to lose an important match like this because a their Pokémon fears their opponent." He said.

Sumi's eyes widened in shock. She'd finally figured it out! "Hold on… You were saying those things to get him to fight?" she asked.

Brock nodded. "I saw how much you wanted to win. I still don't think you have a chance, but it's always sad when the Pokémon's uncertainty keeps the trainer from succeeding. You two have a lot to learn, but your bond is strong enough. You'll get strong enough quickly." He said, his smirk turning into a friendly smile.

His smile must have been contagious, as one was quickly spreading across Sumi's face as well. "I guess I have to thank you then." She said.

{You completely manipulated me, but surprisingly I'm okay with it!} Zee said. He snickered slightly. {And quit with all that talk about me not standing a chance because of type differences! I'm definitely going to win this match!} he said, stomping his back foot on the ground defiantly.

"That's the spirit. Let's go, Zee! Get that Onix!" Sumi shouted.

"Onix, you know what to do." Brock said.

Onix gave a loud cry of confidence, rushing to Headbutt little Zee.

Remembering his training, however, Zee went purely by instinct instead of thinking about it, leaping to the side and dodging the attack. Onix couldn't stop in time, missing him completely and shattering another boulder as it crashed through it. There was one last boulder on the field now thanks to the fight.

"Zee! Come on, you can do it!" Sumi shouted. She pointed at the Onix. "Come on! Get in close to it!" she said. She had a strategy, and was hoping it would work. She also was hoping that her partner trusted her enough to make it work.

Zee nodded, rushing forward. The Onix quickly reared back, watching his movements. Neither of the Pokémon knew what Sumi was planning, but she had hope that it would work. He looked nervous, but he did have trust in her.

He leapt up, straight towards the Onix's face. It moved to the side, causing him to miss his mark just barely. He landed on the other side of the Onix, spinning to face him again, but before he could leap at him again, he gasped. He was suddenly surrounded by the large boulders that made up Onix's body!

"Wrap it." Brock said, just uttering that simple attack command to his Pokémon.

The Onix cried out in triumph suddenly, constricting its body around the little Zorua. Due to the force put behind it, Zee was lifted up into the air, looking like he was in pain.

{S-Sumi! It's getting… Hard to breathe…!} Zee said, a scared look on his face.

"If you don't surrender the match, your Pokémon is going to get hurt pretty badly…" Brock said with a slightly nervous look. He didn't want to hurt Zee, but he wasn't about to forfeit the match when he was this close to winning.

"Not just yet! Zee! Use your Dark Pulse!" Sumi said, smirking lightly.

"Dark Pulse? That little Zorua knows that?" Brock asked, looking up at Zee curiously.

Zee squeezed his eyes shut for a moment, gathering the power inside of his little body to let loose the attack. He opened his mouth suddenly, letting loose a deep purple blast of dark energy at the Onix. Pulses of black light erupted from the energy, hitting the Onix's face, the target Zee had actually been aiming for.

Onix reared back from the hit, roaring in pain. It loosened its coils just enough for Zee to squirm his way out, panting and trying to catch his breath as he hit the ground and regained his footing. He watched the Onix fall back, a confident smirk forming back on his face.

"You did it, Zee!" Sumi shouted, a large smile on her face.

Brock looked stunned, but his expression changed to one of pride. "Good job, Sumi. Onix, return." Brock said, calling his Pokémon back into the Pokéball.

Sumi ran out in the field, seeing that the match was over. She knelt down next to Zee, picking him up in a hug, but was careful not to hug too tight after what had just happened. "I'm so proud of you, Zee! You did great!" she said, kissing her partner's forehead.

{No, Sumi, we did it. It was both of us, not just me. I'd never have thought of that strategy! And even Brock helped out a little bit!} Zee said happily, looking over at their opponent.

Brock was coming across the field with a proud smile on his face. He had something clenched in his hand as he approached.

"You two did very well. You've still got a long ways to go before you're a Pokémon Master, Sumi, but you're well on your way. And Zee, you have a lot of trust in your Trainer, and I can see the bond is strong between you two. Just work on that confidence and you'll be the most powerful Pokémon out there." Brock said.

Sumi stood, picking Zee up so that she was holding him in her arms like a stuffed animal. "Thanks. I've learned a lot from this battle with you." She said, smiling.

{Even though you taunted me to get me to fight, I'm actually a bit happy you did it.} Zee said with his confident smirk.

"Because you have shown your worth as a trainer, I hereby award you with this. The Pewter City Boulder badge." Brock said, holding up his clenched fist. He opened his hand, showing a small, grey, octagonal object between his fingers. It looked like a cut stone, but it shone like a diamond.

Sumi reached forward, taking the badge from him while holding Zee in one arm. "My first trainer badge! This is great, thank you!" she said happily.

"You've earned it. It's symbolic proof that you've defeated me and proven your worth, young trainer. Carry it proudly, and don't forget what you've learned here today." He said.

Sumi nodded. "Right. Thank you again. I'll have to step up the training a little if I'm going to stand a chance against the other gym leaders." She said.

"That's a challenge I'm sure you'll be able to overcome quite easily." Brock told her with a confident smile.

Zee squirmed out of Sumi's arms, climbing up onto her shoulder and resting there. {Let's go, Sumi. I need to get some rest.} he said, letting out a large yawn to prove a point.

Sumi giggled. "Of course, little buddy." She said.

Brock held out his hand. "Good luck on your journey, Sumi. I know you'll be able to succeed, as long as you keep your stone-strong resolve." He said.

Sumi nodded, putting her hand into his. "I'll make sure I do. Zee and I both have to work on our confidence, but that's a hurdle we'll face together." She said, shaking his hand.

"Maybe we'll see each other again in the future? Have fun training, and don't work yourself too hard, okay?" he said, letting go of her hand.

She nodded, turning to leave the gym. "We've got to train past our limits, but I'll try to take it easy at the same time!" she said, waving behind her as she exited the gym.

Together, her and Zee headed to the Pokémon Center, ready to rest up before heading to their next destination. Cerulean City, on the other side of Mt. Moon.


End file.
